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Surveyor proposes consolidating non-maintenance drains and raising assessments; board agrees to pilot test
Summary
DeKalb County surveyor staff presented an organized list of non-maintenance laterals and recommended combining some laterals into parent drains and adjusting per-acre assessments to fund maintenance; the board agreed to pilot the approach on drains under full county control (candidate: Solomon Shank lateral) and to pursue engineering estimates for longstanding flooding on County Road 41.
DeKalb County's surveyor's office told the Drainage Board on April 16 that the county needs a clearer, funded approach to maintain numerous non-maintenance drains and laterals. The office provided an organized table grouping non-maintenance laterals under parent drains, showing current base/minimum assessment rates and account balances, and proposed a pilot to combine laterals into parent-drain accounts and shift to a per-acre rate where appropriate to cover maintenance costs.
"I provided you guys... Becky helped make this list," the surveyor's office said, describing a tablet-sized sheet that groups laterals by parent drain and offers figures for base rates and balances. The staff suggested examples such as moving a lateral now assessed at a $150 minimum to a per-acre rate that more fairly distributes maintenance costs across the parent drain.
Board members generally supported piloting the approach on drains the county fully controls before tackling joint drains shared with other jurisdictions. Participants identified Solomon Shank (and its laterals) as a likely test case because the county already collects assessments that could absorb additional maintenance costs.
Officials asked staff to: inventory lateral sizes and likely maintenance costs; produce cost estimates for putting a lateral on maintenance; propose per-acre rates (and an example conversion from the current minimums where applicable); and present a recommended hearing schedule so the board can consider formal combinations and assessment changes.
The surveyor's report also highlighted several problem areas, including a chronic flooding location along County Road 41 that board members described as recently impassable for school buses. Staff said crews had relayed tile near a power plant in a nearby branch and would investigate current outlet and tile conditions, get contractor input, and prepare engineering estimates to support a hearing on reconstruction if required.
Board members and surveyor staff discussed naming conventions (for example, labeling laterals "Solomon Shank Lateral 1") and trade-offs between historical naming and future clarity. They also noted that joint drains will require coordination with other counties or special boards and that starting with drains entirely under DeKalb County control would simplify the pilot.
What the board asked staff to do next
- Prepare a prioritized list of candidate drains (with sizes and estimated maintenance costs) and recommend one or two pilot drains under full county control. - Produce per-acre rate proposals and a conversion example from current minimums or base rates. - Obtain engineering and contractor estimates for the County Road 41 area and propose a hearing date if reconstruction is needed.
The board scheduled no final policy changes at this meeting; staff will return with cost data and hearing proposals for formal consideration.
