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Special Drainage Board Meeting August 2, 1999
The Vanderburgh County Drainage Board
held a special meeting on August 2, 1999 at 6:30 p.m. in Room 307 of the
Civic Center Complex with President Richard E. Mourdock presiding.
President Mourdock: We'll now call
the special meeting of the Drainage Board to order for August 2, 1999.
Because this is a special Drainage Board meeting we can discuss only one
issue and that issue this evening is the petition brought by Amy V. Gamble
of 2609 Swinging Way Court regarding an obstruction of drainage, so we'll
turn to the Chief Deputy Surveyor, Mr. Jeffers, for an update.
Bill Jeffers: Okay, as you said the petitioner is Amy V. Gamble of 2609 Swinging Way Court. Ms. Gamble is sitting on your left. The respondents are Jerry H. and Maurine N. Cohoon, 2619 Swinging Way Court. The Cohoons are sitting on your right. Ms. Gamble alleged that there existed an obstruction to a natural surface watercourse and all the particulars. The Surveyor went out and immediately inspected the site and confirmed the allegation and filed a report with you on June 28, 1999. You have the report in hand. Both the petitioner and the respondent were sent copies of the report along with a notification of this hearing by Mr. Joe H. Harrison, Jr. in a packet that I assume everyone has. Since that time it is my understanding from the respondents that they have initiated certain work to remove the materials placed along the fence line that represented the obstruction. They're here tonight and have pictures to verify their statement. Ms. Gamble is here to view the pictures and, of course, as they exist in her backyard she has already seen the work that has been accomplished. The statute that governs this proceeding, Indiana Code 36-9-27.4, in part states under Section 13 of that code that: President Mourdock: Okay, do you have-- Commissioner Jerrel: Can we see the pictures? President Mourdock: Yeah, do you have the pictures? Bill Jeffers: I have viewed the site and do confirm that the landscape timbers along the fence line were removed. President Mourdock: Okay. Commissioner Jerrel: Can we see the pictures? Do you have pictures? Bill Jeffers: Mrs. Cohoon has the pictures of the completed work, I believe. President Mourdock: Okay. Maurine Cohoon: I have the whole history which you probably are not interested in, but this is a picture-- President Mourdock: Just the three of us here. Maurine Cohoon: That is a picture of the timbers. They have been removed. This is a picture of the...this was the site in here that was in question. Mrs. Gamble has done that to the yard. President Mourdock: This is on her side of the yard? Maurine Cohoon: Yes. I would like to show you, if I may, the whole history of the problem. Commissioner Jerrel: Sure. Maurine Cohoon: The neighbors next to her piped all the water from all their downspouts and drains into her yard. She subsequently built or placed a pipe, unperforated black pipe probably four or six inches, I don't know, PVC. This is where she did it. It doesn't show the pipe, but this is a picture of what it did to our land. Here is a picture of the pipe underneath her fence on our property. Morley-- President Mourdock: Let me ask you, is this the same fence that we saw a moment ago or the same the location? Maurine Cohoon: Yes. President Mourdock: So this fence was there, it's no longer there and replaced by your fence? Maurine Cohoon: Yes, because she had part of her fence on our property. She piped it, the water, see what she did to our land? She said that we had created problems for her property. She created a little problem for ours too. I have many, many pictures, but these I think represent...but you can see that it created quite a problem. We installed this fence a year ago. As I say, Morley did the surveying. I did not bring his report, but her fence was in certain places on our property. This is a picture of what evidently she called obstruction. My husband had put sod all along the fence and here and then strawed it because we wanted grass and she maliciously dug underneath the sod. President Mourdock: How did she get underneath the fence? Maurine Cohoon: She got underneath the timber somehow. Well, you can see it. Joe Harrison, Jr.: As far as the fence is concerned though have you removed the portion of it? Maurine Cohoon: Yes, they are gone. Commissioner Tuley: Some of her earlier pictures shows they're clean. Maurine Cohoon: But nonetheless, it didn't...they did not obstruct the flow. We do now have some grass. She has...the timbers were put there with her knowledge because she had two dogs, here is a picture of one of them, that ran up and down the fence. Actually, she has done damage to our fence. This is a PVC fence. We paid $11,000 for this fence. There is mud all over it on her side. I don't know whether...this is a picture of our fence. This, of course, is not what is the matter at hand. This is what our yard looked like before. President Mourdock: Okay, the matter at hand is the drainage. Maurine Cohoon: The drainage problem which has been corrected. President Mourdock: Let me just ask the question then to Ms. Gamble, if I may. Maurine Cohoon: Sure. President Mourdock: The Chief Deputy Surveyor has suggested or inferred, Ms. Gamble, that you're willing to accept or offer a postponement on this to see if the removal of those timbers has in fact rectified the problem, is that right? Amy Gamble: Yes. President Mourdock: Right, okay. Joe Harrison, Jr.: Could you come up to the mike. President Mourdock: Yeah, since we tape record all our minutes here. Amy Gamble: Amy Gamble. President Mourdock: Okay, and just asking the question-- Amy Gamble: Yes, I am in agreement with that. President Mourdock: Okay, Bill, do you have a suggested time period then for the postponement of reviewing this? Bill Jeffers: I spoke with Ms. Gamble earlier and she said she thought by the end of September she would have a pretty good idea whether or not the landscaping on both sides of the fences would work to her satisfaction and then that would put it up around our regular Drainage Board meeting in September, the 27th I believe. Joe Harrison, Jr.: Yeah, September 27th. It could be on the agenda for that regular meeting. President Mourdock: Okay. Joe Harrison, Jr.: And if by that time Ms. Gamble is satisfied with the changes she could notify the Surveyor's Office either to dismiss the petition or she may want to come and have the hearing continued at that time for a final determination. Bill Jeffers: But that would be the hearing, is that correct? Joe Harrison, Jr.: Yes. Bill Jeffers: You would be taking an action now to postpone the hearing to September 27th and then either receive notification by letter or by Ms. Gamble in person that that would be a satisfactory date to continue the hearing. President Mourdock: Well, since the petitioner has put that request forward, and again, Ms. Gamble, I'll ask if that date is okay with you since Bill-- Amy Gamble: Yes. President Mourdock: Okay. I would look for a motion then that we postpone this hearing this evening until our-- Maurine Cohoon: (Inaudible.) President Mourdock: Let me just go ahead and state it and then we'll have a comment here. Until the Drainage Board hearing meeting of September 27th. Is there a motion to that effect? Commissioner Jerrel: I'll move for the purpose of getting this on the floor, yes. President Mourdock: Okay, now please. Maurine Cohoon: We will not be in town on September 27th. President Mourdock: Step to the mike. Maurine Cohoon: We're going to be California. Commissioner Jerrel: Well, when will you be back? Maurine Cohoon: We will be back...we will be there eight days. So is there another time that we could meet either prior or-- Commissioner Jerrel: After? Could we do it when you get back? Maurine Cohoon: Sure. President Mourdock: What is the following Monday if we had another special? Joe Harrison, Jr.: The following Monday would be October 4th. Maurine Cohoon: We will be back. We're flying from San Diego on October 4th. Joe Harrison, Jr.: Oh, you are. Maurine Cohoon: Yes. President Mourdock: So the following Monday would be the 11th? Joe Harrison, Jr.: Yeah, the following after that would be the 11th. Commissioner Jerrel: Well, we could do that. Is the 11th...I'm not looking right, that's not right. Joe Harrison, Jr.: Yeah, that would be Solid Waste. Commissioner Jerrel: Yeah, but I'm not looking at the September calendar. Joe Harrison, Jr.: No, you're looking at October now. Commissioner Jerrel: Oh, I'm not looking at that either. I am right, the 11th. President Mourdock: You have 31 to choose from! Commissioner Jerrel: Well, July 11th is on Monday, too. Okay, then I'll just include that in my motion if that's alright with you, Ms. Gamble? Alright, the 11th. Joe Harrison, Jr.: If we're going to have to have a special meeting then we will advertise in September and it would be October 11th and we probably ought to say at 6:30. President Mourdock: Okay. Maurine Cohoon: That's fine. Joe Harrison, Jr.: Unless notified otherwise that there is no reason to have it. Commissioner Jerrel: Okay. Commissioner Tuley: Second. President Mourdock: Okay, so with that I will say so ordered and we will have that special meeting along with the advertising. Commissioner Jerrel: Okay, we'll see you all. President Mourdock: Hopefully, we'll get not overwhelming rains because none of us need those, but hopefully we'll get sufficient rains to prove the system works. Charlene Timmons: Did we adjourn? (Several inaudible conversations at one time.) Maurine Cohoon: We both have watered and watered and watered. I hate to see my water bill. Charlene Timmons: Did we adjourn? Commissioner Tuley: And sewer. President Mourdock: Yeah, and sewer bill, they get you twice. Maurine Cohoon: And sewage is-- Charlene Timmons: Did we ever adjourn? President Mourdock: Oh, we need a motion for adjournment. Commissioner Jerrel: Oh, wait a minute. Maurine Cohoon: What happened to the pictures, are you going to keep them? Charlene Timmons: Uh-huh. Commissioner Jerrel: Oh, wait a minute. We'll keep them. Maurine Cohoon: I have beaucoup pictures if you want more. Bill Jeffers: Well, those were very helpful. Commissioner Jerrel: Yeah, and they are good. I'd like to move...make a motion to adjourn. Commissioner Tuley: Second. President Mourdock: So ordered. We're adjourned. The meeting was adjourned at 6:48 p.m. Those in attendance:
Vanderburgh County
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