Wright County board approves partial abandonment of County Ditch 20

Acting as the county drainage authority, the Wright County Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution on Jan. 7, 2025, to partially abandon a section of County Ditch 20 following completion of required as-built documentation.

The action implements a petition for partial abandonment filed pursuant to Minnesota Statute 103E.806, county staff said at the meeting. Staff reported that Bowser Engineering delivered final as-built documents for the section of ditch covered by the petition, making the project eligible for formal abandonment.

Board members and staff said the partial abandonment follows several years of discussion and field work. A staff member who presented the item said the project is complete and thanked soil-and-water staff for assistance, adding, “This was great teamwork.” Dan Naidu of the county soil-and-water office was also identified as assisting on the project.

Commissioner Dietrich moved to adopt the resolution for partial abandonment; Commissioner Holland seconded. The roll-call/resolution vote recorded all members voting in favor and the motion passed.

The board clarified at the meeting that the action is a partial abandonment only; commissioners noted the county did not have legal authority at this time to grant full abandonment of the ditch. Staff and affected landowners will now proceed under the terms of the adopted resolution and the drainage statutes cited at the hearing.

The board’s formal abandonment resolution implements the next procedural step under county drainage law; the resolution and the as-built documents provided by Bowser Engineering are now part of the public record for this matter.

Less-central details discussed at the meeting included which adjacent roadways might benefit from a broader abandonment; commissioners acknowledged the broader changes would require additional legal authority or separate proceedings.