Council presses developer for complete stormwater engineering, considers holding permits

Councilors used the April 23 session to press a developer on stormwater and phasing questions for the Estates subdivision. Staff reported the final engineering calculations and signed drawings for later phases were incomplete or were provided after the final-plat discussions; council members said that exposed the town to future storm-drain responsibility if phase-related drainage was not sized correctly.

Speaker 2 asked the developer to provide pipe sizing and storm-calculation reports covering 5‑, 30‑ and 100‑year design storms. The council emphasized that current town ordinance language requires surface water from subdivision development be handled on-site to the maximum extent practical and that the town engineer must review and accept drainage facilities. One speaker suggested the town can leverage permitting authority by declining to issue new permits until the developer provides the required documentation and fixes deviations from approved plans (an example discussed: an electrical‑box placement that does not match approved drawings).

Staff and councilors also discussed making any agreed-upon adjustments part of the final-plat record (in writing) so future ownership changes do not create enforcement gaps. The council asked staff to require better documentation from the developer and to confirm that drainage design will not offload new runoff problems onto nearby pastures and private property.

Next steps: staff will ask the developer’s engineer (Sunrise Engineering, named in the packet) for the missing calculations and documentation, ask the town engineer (Garrett Weldon) to review submitted plans for 5/30/100‑year events, and consider conditional holds on additional zoning approvals until those items are resolved.