Vanderburgh County amends stormwater rules, shifts erosion-control plan timing to builders

The Vanderburgh County Board of Commissioners on July 9 approved Ordinance C0.07-24-006, which amends section 13.04.02 of the county code governing construction-site stormwater runoff control. The change redefines when a construction erosion-control plan must be submitted, moving the trigger from the time of parcelization to the time a structure is built on the parcel.

County staff member Craig told commissioners the revision responds to policy changes adopted in 2021 that made parcelization easier and led some landowners to parcel property without knowing what would be built. "This doesn't eliminate the requirement for that. It just pushes it from the person who's doing the parcelization to the person who's actually doing the building and the constructing on the parcelized lots," Craig said during the presentation, adding that further clarifications will be included in a forthcoming related proposal expected before September.

The ordinance is intended to allow property owners to record plats and market parcels without producing a comprehensive erosion-control plan at the time of plat filing. Craig and county staff said individual landowners who later construct on the parcels will still be required to provide an erosion-control plan at the building stage. County engineer John Stoll and consultant Wessler Engineering helped prepare the proposal and certified that the definition drawn from a federal standard would be acceptable in the county code.

Commissioners moved to waive a second reading and approved the ordinance on first and final reading by roll call. No public comment was offered during the vote. The change alters the procedural timing for erosion-control compliance but does not eliminate the substantive requirements for erosion control at construction.