Commission recommends conditional approval to vacate 10-foot drainage easement at 1558 Meadowlark Drive

The Titusville Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval of Easement Vacation No. 3‑2024, a request by property owner John Dacko to vacate a 10‑foot portion of a 20‑foot public drainage easement at 1558 Meadowlark Drive, with a condition requiring a city permit and engineering showing how the swale will be realigned within the remaining easement and that the work be completed within one year.

The petition was first filed on Sept. 10, 2024. Planning staff initially recommended reducing the applicant’s request to a smaller semicircle-shaped vacation after engineering review identified a swale and piping serving the block. The applicant supplied a survey with elevations and asked the commission to consider vacating the full 10‑foot strip. Community development engineer KB Ofosu told commissioners the block has a Type B drainage design: yards slope toward rear corners, a swale in backyards conveys flow to an inlet and pipe across Meadowlark Drive to a retention pond to the north, and the retention pond discharges toward an adjacent wetland. Ofosu said portions of the swale were difficult to see on site and that some lack of maintenance may have reduced clarity of the original feature.

Staff told the commission that the subdivision plat and the recorded covenants allocate responsibility differently: the piping in the easement is to be maintained by the city, while the swale itself is maintained by individual property owners and enforced through the homeowners association. Staff reiterated that vacating the full 10 feet as requested was not recommended without additional engineering because altering the easement could change how drainage is conveyed across multiple lots.

Applicant John Dacko told the commission he has already obtained a survey and engineer assessment and has spent roughly $1,800 on prior steps; he said completing the additional signed, sealed site plan the city requested would cost about $1,000 more. Commissioners and staff discussed technical minimums from the subdivision plans and cross‑sections presented in the packet: Ofosu said the minimum swale depth shown in the plans is 12 inches and the side slope is a 4:1 slope from top to bottom.

After public comment and questions, the commission moved to recommend approval with a staff‑drafted condition. Staff read the recommended condition into the record: "the vacation will not be recorded until the applicant obtains a permit showing how the swale will be realigned within the remaining 10 feet of the easement for the flow to be maintained and that should be done within 1 year." The commission voted unanimously in roll call to forward the recommendation to city council.

The recommendation is advisory; final acceptance and recordation of an easement vacation would occur at the city council level and after the city’s permit review and inspection process. The condition placed by the commission is intended to ensure the remaining easement can continue to convey stormwater consistent with the approved subdivision design.