Tippecanoe County drainage board approves 2025 drain lists, multiple encroachment petitions and Dismal Creek drainage area

Tippecanoe County Drainage Board members voted Feb. 5 to approve the county’s 2025 regulated-drain assessment status list and a drain-classification report, to grant a series of encroachment petitions for broadband, sewer and development projects, and to adopt Resolution 2025-01 establishing the Dismal Creek impact drainage area.

County Surveyor Zach recommended approval of the assessment status list and the classification report and described the routine mechanics for marking drains “inactive” when their maintenance fund reaches a statutorily set cap. “I would recommend approval as presented,” Zach said when presenting the lists and later answered board questions about specific petitions and projects.

The approvals clear a batch of encroachment petitions tied to multiple projects: six Broadway Broadband crossings on the county’s east line (some extending into Carroll County), four petitions from Frontier Communications (two related to the Morehouse/Hadley Lake project and two farther east and south), encroachments and setback reductions for the Vita Lifestyle development (five encroachments and three reduction requests), 13 crossings for the Buck Creek–Colburn sewer conveyance, two encroachments tied to the City of Lafayette’s sanitary sewer work on Dismal Creek (reviewed alongside a planned two-stage ditch design by Christopher Burke Engineering), and two encroachments near the city-owned woods north of IU Arnett Hospital. The board also approved a maintenance-agreement related to stormwater BMPs tied to the Vita Lifestyle project and accepted a $5,000 performance bond for the Edgel Event Barn to cover spring seeding and erosion-control completion.

On the Dismal Creek matter, the board adopted Resolution 2025-01 to establish an impact drainage area with a restricted release rate shown in staff materials as 0.23 cubic feet per second per acre. Zach said the Dismal Creek watershed is expected to face development pressure over coming decades and that the drainage area and related hydraulic study are intended to protect downstream areas from increased runoff. When asked about total watershed acreage, Zach estimated roughly 2,500 acres and said it was “between 2 and 3,000 acres,” noting the figure was not shown on the map before the board.

Votes at a glance: A voice vote was used on all listed items; the transcript records each motion as passing. - Approval of Jan. 8, 2025 meeting minutes — motion passed (voice vote). - Approval of 2025 regulated-drain assessment status list — motion passed (voice vote). Staff noted drains are marked “inactive” when maintenance fund balances meet a cap set by the original 4-, 6- or 8-year assessment period. - Approval of 2025 regulated-drain classification report — motion passed (voice vote). - Broadway Broadband — approval of six encroachment petitions (east county line; some into Carroll County) — motion passed (voice vote). - Frontier Communications — approval of four encroachment petitions (Hadley Lake/Morehouse and other locations) — motion passed (voice vote). - Vita Lifestyle project — approval of five encroachments and three petitions for reduction (open ditch and tile/setback reductions) — motion passed (voice vote). Staff said reductions apply to both tile and open-ditch portions. - Buck Creek–Colburn sewer project — approval of 13 encroachments for linear force main crossings (one duplicate entry was crossed out on the agenda) — motion passed (voice vote). - City of Lafayette sanitary sewer (Dismal Creek drain #93) — approval of two encroachments; staff confirmed coordination with Christopher Burke Engineering’s planned two-stage ditch design to avoid interference — motion passed (voice vote). - City of Lafayette (Burlowitz/Birtle Woods area and access near IU Arnett Hospital) — approval of two encroachments, including a stone access intended to remain for long-term maintenance access to a detention pond — motion passed (voice vote). - Resolution 2025-01, establishing the Dismal Creek impact drainage area (restricted release rate 0.23 CFS/acre listed in materials) — adopted (voice vote). - Maintenance agreement for stormwater BMPs tied to the Vita Lifestyle project — approved (voice vote). - Performance bond for Edgel Event Barn ($5,000) — accepted to allow issuance of a certificate of occupancy pending spring seeding and erosion-control work — motion passed (voice vote).

Board members asked a small number of clarifying questions during the meeting, chiefly about how “inactive” drain status is calculated and the size of the Dismal Creek watershed. County Surveyor Zach explained the inactive designation is tied to the maintenance fund reaching a cap determined at the time of the maintenance hearing by multiplying the annual collection by the original assessment term (4-, 6- or 8-year cap). The board heard that some proposed reconstruction projects are landowner-driven and have been postponed where landowners withdrew petitions.

The board had no public comment at the meeting and adjourned after completing the items on the agenda. Staff noted the assessment list and related documents are provided to the auditor’s office so affected maintenance funds can be billed or left inactive per statute.