But Cardenas said that his two Labradors also were culprits, repeatedly chewing off sprinkler heads in the backyard, causing water to leak and gush. Cardenas has since given one of the dogs away and said he was trying to train the other to stop chewing. "But dogs will be dogs," he said.
To conserve water, Cardenas said, he converted more than half of his backyard this summer to concrete, paving stones and plants that require less water. He now has five sprinkler heads, down from 15. And he said he waters only at night.
"This is going to be a wake-up call for us council members and all the people of L.A.," Cardenas said. "Even though we try to conserve water, we can all do a better job."
For some officials, conservation and appearance must be balanced: Councilman Dennis Zine said he waters only three times a week at his West Hills home but makes sure to maintain the large frontyard because it's "not good for a City Council member to have an unkempt lawn when you're trying to establish a good quality of life in your community."
Some city leaders are relatively light consumers, including Councilman Bernard C. Parks, who used less water proportionately at his Crenshaw-area home than any of his elected colleagues over the last year -- only 35% of what was typical for properties of similar size.
Parks' chief of staff, Bernard C. Parks Jr., said the frugal use of water reflects his parents' busy lifestyle. "You've got two people who are conscientious over water use and also aren't home that often," he said.
City Controller Laura Chick used less than average amounts of water, as did City Council President Eric Garcetti and council members Jack Weiss, Ed Reyes and Janice Hahn. (Weiss actually used about four times the amount as Chick, but still ranks among the most water-thrifty when compared to his Westside neighbors.)
Chick said she installed cactus and other drought-resistant landscaping at her hillside home in Silver Lake to save water. "I'm really a fanatic," she said. "I don't let the water run when I'm not using it."
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Other factors
But Chick and other officials acknowledged that other factors may have contributed to their low water use. Chick, Garcetti, Parks and Reyes, for example, have no front lawns. Chick and Hahn also are empty nesters.
"I can't compare to someone who has kids and does the laundry every day," said Hahn, who lives on a San Pedro hillside overlooking the ocean.
As for those city leaders who use more than their share of water, they can look to Villaraigosa for guidance. The news release he distributed at his June news conference offered "10 simple ways to conserve water."
Among the tips: take shorter showers, install "smart" sprinkler systems, stop using toilets as trash cans and fix leaky pipes.
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duke.helfand@latimes.com
Times staff writers Matt Lait and Doug Smith contributed to this report.
