Spirit Lake council approves Southern Hills 4 development agreement despite resident drainage concerns

The Spirit Lake City Council voted 4–1 Oct. 14 to approve a development agreement with CSP, L.L.C. for the Southern Hills 4 subdivision after several residents urged the city to resolve drainage questions before construction proceeds.

The agreement, adopted as Resolution No. 2025-52, passed on a roll-call vote with Councilmembers Johnson, Kofoot, Brockmeyer and Mensing voting aye and Councilmember Chappas opposing. The motion to adopt was introduced by Councilmember Kofoot and seconded by Councilmember Brockmeyer.

During the public hearing, residents asked for specific mitigation steps. Justin Garvin said the new phase currently drains into “the pond in my backyard in the Stover development,” and urged the city to address the drainage plan before development advances. Bob Shumway said the Stover ponds filled during last year’s flooding and that water reached his basement.

Ben Groen of Beck Engineering, the project engineer, told the council the Southern Hills 4 pond is located on the southwest corner of the property and is “undersized” in its current condition. Groen said part of Phase 1 work will deepen that pond and modify the outlet to better control flow, and that a pipe connecting the Southern Hills 4 pond to the Stover pond exists and will be investigated. He said the team will televise the outlet line to gather data, a process he estimated could take two to three weeks.

Groen noted the new pond outlet is designed as an 8-inch tile and will be included in the drainage district; he also identified a 15-inch tile between the two ponds and said he has contacted Jacobsen Westergaard, the designers of the Stover development, to confirm details. Groen said some items — including ownership of a private tile on the Radcliffe property and the televising results — may not be resolved immediately but that he would coordinate follow-up with City Administrator Gregg L. Owens.

Council members differentiated the current vote on the financial/contractual side of the development agreement from final plat approval. Councilmember Mensing emphasized this meeting addressed the financial authorization and not the final plat or construction permits. Mayor Kevin Bice said the city must ensure it is “doing right by the existing neighborhoods.”

Groen told the council the Southern Hills 4 pond will become a city-owned pond and will not be maintained by individual homeowners; several residents requested written answers on tile ownership, mitigation plans and outlet locations by the next council meeting.

The council closed the public hearing and adopted the resolution. City staff and the engineering team said they will return with the televising results and additional clarifications in follow-up communications to the council and residents.