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Humboldt County sets May 19 formal hearing for DD 11 ditch cleaning after operator cites silted two-mile stretch
Summary
Supervisors set a formal hearing May 19 for Drainage District 11 after the districts operator reported a roughly two-mile section that has not been cleaned since 2012 and estimated a project below the county bid threshold; the board directed staff to notify landowners and publish hearing notices.
The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors set a formal hearing for 9 a.m. on May 19 to consider cleaning work in Drainage District 11 (DD 11) after hearing details from the district operator about persistent silt and sand pockets that impede flow.
The operator, Travis, told supervisors crews had previously cleaned many branches and reaches of the district but had identified a roughly two-mile section in the middle of the ditch that "we never got" since at least 2012. He said that section holds water and contributes to bank sloughing where the ditch runs along Colorado Avenue. "If we got this last section right in the middle, then the really, the whole top end of DD 11 would have been cleaned, you know, in the last 13 years," Travis said.
Travis described field conditions observed during recent work: significant silt and a road crossing with as much as 4 feet of material in it, buried clay tile lines that began to run this spring and saturated banks that had failed, and sandy stretches that scour and slough when water stands. He said crews removed two buried tile lines and plan to install steel tubes at tile outlets where appropriate. He also said the operator uses lasers and water lines as practical guides when setting grades and typically avoids cutting below box-culvert aprons.
County staff advised the board the bid letting threshold is $206,000 and that this project would be expected to be well below that threshold. Supervisors discussed statutory notice requirements: letters to landowners and publication timing (the board noted the requirement to publish no fewer than 10 days and no more than 20 days before a formal hearing), and directed staff to prepare and mail notices and publish the hearing date. Supervisors asked the operator to meet with affected farmers before the hearing; the operator and staff planned to monitor early responses from landowners once letters are mailed.
The board approved the motion to set the May 19 hearing by voice vote; the motion carried with no recorded opposition. The hearing will be formal and include a public comment period and an opportunity for affected landowners to submit objections or comments. If the board proceeds after the hearing, the county will solicit contractor bids and move forward with cleaning plans consistent with the drainage district process.
The operator and supervisors discussed repair techniques for sandy sloughs, including reshaping banks to a two-to-one slope where possible and using riprap in persistent seepage areas. They also discussed coordinating work around tile repairs, box culverts and field conditions so equipment operators avoid undermining aprons or creating unintended deep pockets.
Board members asked the operator to be available at the hearing to answer technical questions from landowners and to provide mapping of the proposed cleaned reach. The board scheduled the formal hearing for May 19 at 9 a.m. and directed staff to begin required notices to owners in sections 21, 22 and 23 of the district.
