Ramsey County water board approves snag‑and‑clear petition for Newbury Township; county commission concurs

The Ramsey County Water Board and county commissioners approved a snag‑and‑clear cleanout petition for a natural channel in Newbury Township following a public hearing and a KLJ engineering study.

John (staff member) told the board the county accepted a petition from township landowners and hired KLJ to determine the benefited area. Paul of KLJ presented maps generated from the International Water Institute LIDAR viewer showing the area that drains into the channel; KLJ also checked US Fish and Wildlife easements that intersect the area. Paul said easement acres would be assessed at 50% and that acreage used for cleanouts is charged at 50¢ per acre in the county’s accounting for similar cleanouts.

Public testimony included landowners who said the project aims to move standing water off township roads and private land so runoff can return to the channel more smoothly. One commenter described repeated spring overtop and sediment buildup in the Coulee that prevents water from exiting effectively. Several residents said the work would relieve localized flooding along county roads.

The water board — three members present — made and seconded a motion to approve a resolution of necessity; the board voted in the affirmative. The full county commission then took a vote by roll call and approved the resolution (Frith aye; Volk aye; Wilhelmi aye; Gessner aye). The commission closed the hearing and resumed regular business.

Why this matters: The resolution allows the county to assess landowners in the defined benefited area to fund the cleanout work and to pursue bids for the dirt work. Staff said the financing would follow statute requirements for water board loans: the board may take a five‑year loan and assessments may be structured accordingly; staff noted typical practice is a five‑year loan with the possibility of a subsequent loan if assessments require longer to collect.

Technical details and constraints: KLJ used publicly available LIDAR data to define the drainage area for the petition. Paul said the project scope restores flow by removing vegetation and accumulated sediment rather than changing the drainage area or substantially deepening/widening the channel. He said the objective is “restoring the flow…the drainage area stays the same.” US Fish and Wildlife easement lands in the benefit area will be treated as assessed at half the normal per‑acre rate, per the materials presented.

Next steps: Staff said the water board’s resolution and the commission’s vote will allow the board to move forward with the assessment process and contract bidding for the work; staff also asked for documentation of the water board vote to be recorded before final commission action.

Ending: The project proceeds to the assessment and contracting phase; staff and KLJ said they will provide specification and bid documents to the board and county when prepared.