County staff presented a detailed review of the Washburn Drainage District at the Dec. 30 Board of Supervisors meeting, describing the district’s history, infrastructure and options for funding repairs and long-term maintenance.

Cathy, a county staff presenter, said the district was established in 1969 and includes an open channel plus roughly 400 feet of underground pipe that moves water toward Highway 218. “In 2024, we put together a cost replacement estimate for the finance director, and we estimated it would cost approximately $370,000 to replace everything in the Washburn Drainage District,” Cathy said. She told supervisors the system is about 45 years old and has never been thoroughly inspected.

The staff presentation listed the district’s footprint as about 405 parcels (including sections north and south of Washburn Road and areas east and west of Highway 218) and identified infrastructure components including 54-inch to 24-inch pipes, aprons and a large flap gate near the system’s outlet. Staff noted photographic evidence of fallen tree limbs and recommended both manual maintenance and an engineering inspection of buried pipes and control structures.

Staff provided preliminary cost estimates for maintenance and improvements: mowing and herbicide work at roughly $2,200–$2,500 annually; a one-time large-tree-removal estimate around $35,000; and a comprehensive replacement estimate near $370,000. The county’s roadside vegetation manager and contractors would be engaged to refine those numbers. Staff also recommended hiring an engineering consultant to inspect the interior of buried pipes and draft an operations manual so future staff will not have to rely on institutional memory.

Speakers discussed legal and funding mechanisms. County records/engineering staff explained the historic 'schedule of benefits' method used to allocate assessments and noted that if a new assessment is made, engineers must update benefit schedules and ownership records. Staff also cited recent legislation requiring improved recorded disclosure so property buyers will be informed if a parcel lies in a drainage district.

Supervisors directed staff to gather more detailed estimates, survey property lines as needed and return with a funding proposal that could include ten years of maintenance costs and an assessment plan. The presentation closed with staff committing to prepare cost and timeline options and to seek a consultant for inspection work.