VANDERBURGH COUNTY

DRAINAGE BOARD

AUGUST 14, 2007

The Vanderburgh County Drainage Board met in session this 14^th day of August, 2007 at 5:05 p.m. in room 301 of the Civic Center Complex with Commissioner Nix presiding.

Commissioner Nix: Good afternoon. I would like to call to order the Vanderburgh County Drainage Board, Tuesday, August 14, 2007 meeting, it’s 5:05 p.m.

Commissioner Nix: I will entertain a motion to approve minutes of the previous meeting.

Commissioner Tornatta: So moved.

Commissioner Nix: Second. All in favor?

Commissioner Tornatta: Aye.

Commissioner Nix: Aye.

Commissioner Nix: Mr. Jeffers, good to see you this afternoon, sir.

Bill Jeffers: Good afternoon, Commissioners and staff. Did you approve the minutes from the previous meeting?

Commissioner Tornatta: Yes.

Bill Jeffers: I’m sorry.

Commissioner Nix: We certainly did. A step ahead of you.

Bill Jeffers: We were giving sign language over here. Okay, our first order of business tonight is a drainage easement encroachment agreement between the county and Aaron and Regina Muller, 2419 Wheaton Drive, which is lot 101, Windemere Farms, section three. Basically, I’ve handed you a drawing, which as a part of the agreement is called exhibit A, exhibit B, exhibit C. Exhibit A is the lot itself, lot 101, shown to you with the lot dimensions. Exhibit B is the 15 foot wide drainage easement along the south line of that lot. That is cross hatched and labeled 15 feet wide. That’s your drainage easement. Then, exhibit C would be the portion of the swimming pool and pool deck which encroaches that drainage easement. The encroachment is an average of about five, leaves about five feet of the drainage easement for about one third of its total length. Okay, so, obviously, the reason that the petitioner is asking to encroach the easement is so he can build a swimming pool, she and he can build a swimming pool behind their home and enjoy the swimming pool. As you know, a drainage easement is a strip of land that’s reserved for drainage facilities, pipes, ditches, etcetera. It has no other utilities in it, or should not have any other utilities in it. It’s not a public utility easement. It’s only for drainage purposes. It remains a piece of that property owner’s property, and that property owner does pay taxes on that easement. So, it’s not like a right-of-way for a street or so forth. It’s only, it is there simply because when the developer of Windemere Farms had platted this portion of his development, he had not yet bought the property to the south. This may have been the last extent of the development to the south from Kansas Road, and, therefore would have to capture all the water coming off of the project and convey it out to his detention basin, which is down in Camden Farms. However, that same developer went forward and bought section five and section four and developed it, and the water coming off of this area, including lot 101 and the adjoining lots, simply sheet flows off in just a natural terrain, does not have to be intercepted. It is intercepted on a lot to the south and carried out to the system and down to the detention basin. So, there truly is no need for drainage facilities within this easement, and, in particular, there’s no need, or no contemplated placement of drainage facilities in the particular small portion that he would like to encroach. I don’t anticipate any drainage facilities to ever be placed there. Therefore, we find, our office finds a reasonable cause for him to ask to encroach it so that he can more fully utilize his property that he’s paying taxes on. The form has been filled out. This is our regular, standard legal form. It’s going to be recorded, if you approve it, in the County Recorder’s office. Your recording secretary has the original, along with a check for recordation, and the County Surveyor recommends approval of the drainage easement encroachment agreement for Aaron and Regina Muller, 2419 Wheaton Drive.

Commissioner Nix: I have one question.

Bill Jeffers: Yes, sir.

Commissioner Nix: Can you walk me through the grade on this from end to end? Just which way it....is this....go ahead.

Bill Jeffers: Yes, if you’re looking at the left hand side of your photograph, I mean, your copy, over here the elevation of the ground is about the same as it is on the right hand corner, you know, the southeast corner of his property. Those are about the same. About where it says exhibit B and has an arrow pointing to the easement, there is a little saddle in the ground, very gentle, it’s not, it’s just defined enough to let you know that’s where the water passes off of his property. Right about where that arrow is pointing.

Commissioner Nix: Okay.

Bill Jeffers: The water from the adjoining property also comes down, he has a swing set right about here. If you look on the aerial photograph you would see a swing set. I’ve seen pictures of the water during a torrential downpour. I asked him to show me the worst pictures he had, and the water all runs off his property, through this portion that he’s not asking to encroach. The swimming pool is on higher ground. It would not be in the path of any natural watercourse.

Commissioner Nix: Okay.

Bill Jeffers: It’s basically a gently rolling hill that just kind of sheet flows to the south.

Commissioner Nix: Okay. Questions?

Commissioner Tornatta: Upon the recommendation of the Surveyor, I make a motion to approve.

Commissioner Nix: Second. All in favor?

Commissioner Tornatta: Aye.

Commissioner Nix: Aye.

Bill Jeffers: I have another item of business, claims for services received by the Drainage Board from various vendors. They are all in appropriate form, and recommend approval of those claims.

Commissioner Tornatta: So moved.

Commissioner Nix: Second. All in favor?

Commissioner Tornatta: Aye.

Commissioner Nix: Aye.

Bill Jeffers: Excuse me. I have one other item of business, that I do not have on the agenda because I had not received one document I was waiting for. However, I see that the developer and his engineering representative are here in the audience. It’s for Green Hill Subdivision on Green River Road just south of Kansas Road. What the situation is, is that there was an old farm drain that came down out of what’s now Windham Hill, developed by Scott Raley, when that was a farm it came down off the hill and there was a vast amount of drainage that came down through this farm drain and drained out to Green River Road. Jagoe bought a portion of that property and developed a subdivision called Green Hill Subdivision. That farm drain drained along their north line, between them and Mr. Roth, an owner of about a five acre parcel or so at the southwest corner of Kansas and Green River. This entire farm drain is on Green Hill. It is not on Mr. Roth. Subsequently, Scott Raley developed Windham Hill and intercepted a big majority of the water that came down off the hill and directed it towards his detention basins. So, the size of the ditch that we required of Green Hill ended up being much larger than what is needed now. Right now they’ve submitted, Morley and Associates has submitted some alternate plans showing that less than one foot of depth in the total ditch, which might be three, three and a half feet deep, less than one foot of that is needed to convey the 25 year design storm. Because of some land grade issues and some excavation contractor issues, the ditch ended up having more of a “v” bottom than a flat bottom. Our code requires a flat bottom to stabilize erosion better. This ended up slightly more of a “v” bottom ditch. So, when the inspectors from the County Engineer’s office went out for final inspection, they determined that it wasn’t in strict conformance with the plans and the code. And, since all of the homes have been built, all the lawns have been established, we’ve been through several rainy periods and seen the ditch operate under it’s current conditions, I gave them the option of submitting a modified plan to prove, through their calculations, that are certified by a registered engineer, that the ditch is stable and will handle a maximum 25 year storm run off within the easement and within the bottom portion of this ditch. That’s been submitted to me and reviewed, and I do say that it’s accurate at this point. I also ask that the representative of Jagoe, Manuel Ball, who is here in the audience, I asked him to bring in kind of an affidavit signed by all the property owners of each lot through which the ditch passes that they are satisfied with the condition of the ditch, and it’s configuration. That they’ve not had problems, and that they recognize it being stable and no problem for them to maintain in its current shape. That’s why it’s not on the agenda, because I had not received that affidavit at this point in time. Then I asked Mr. Ball to also figure on cleaning out one, small silt bar at the bottom end of the ditch. When you get down to Green River Road and the water slows down, it deposited some sediment. He agreed he would clean that out and reshape that portion. But, he doesn’t want to take heavy equipment up into these yards that have been established for a year or more and wreck the landscaping and wreck, you know, tear out the grass and start all over again just to make the bottom of the ditch perfectly flat. So, I would recommend that the Drainage Board waive the requirement for a one foot flat bottom ditch in this sole instance. You can, according to the drainage code, consider things on a case by case basis. I am attesting that the calculations show that the ditch is performing it’s function without a flat bottom. However, I still insist that in order for this to become complete and take effect that Mr. Ball submit a signed affidavit from all property owners affected within the subdivision, and those being the ones who own property through which the ditch passes, that they agree that the ditch is suitable to their purposes, satisfactory, and that he will remove the sediment bar at the bottom end of the ditch and regrade just that one portion. It might be ten or 15 feet long.

Commissioner Nix: Questions?

Commissioner Tornatta: Upon the recommendation and the provisions that the Surveyor has provided, I move approval.

Commissioner Nix: Second. All in favor?

Commissioner Tornatta: Aye.

Commissioner Nix: Aye.

Bill Jeffers: Thank you, and I have no other business to bring before you, unless there is public comment to be made.

Commissioner Nix: Is there any public comment? Did we approve claims?

Commissioner Tornatta: Yes.

Bill Jeffers: Yes.

Commissioner Nix: Did we do that already? Okay.

Commissioner Tornatta: Motion to adjourn.

Commissioner Nix: Second. All in favor?

Commissioner Tornatta: Aye.

Commissioner Nix: Aye. We are adjourned. Thank you, Mr. Jeffers.

Bill Jeffers: Thank you.

Commissioner Nix: Have a good evening.

(The meeting was adjourned at 5:17 p.m.)

Those in Attendance:

Troy Tornatta                                      Bill Nix                            Bill Jeffers

Ted C. Ziemer, Jr.                    Madelyn Grayson           Others Unidentified

Members of Media

VANDERBURGH COUNTY

DRAINAGE BOARD

Troy Tornatta, Vice President

Bill Nix, Member

(Recorded and transcribed by Madelyn Grayson.)