09-23-2020 Workshop Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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STAFF REPORT TO:Mayor Keis and Members of City Council FROM:Chris Heineman, City Administrator Bill Dircks, Public Works Director DATE:September 15, 2020 RE:Morrison Ditch Discussion In February, the City Council was asked to consider awarding a contract for cleaning the Morrison drainage area at the south end of the wetland between McMenemy Street and Morrison Avenue. The project included removing up to a foot of sand, silt, compost, and other debris to re-establish the grade through the narrow ditch section that leads to the wetland outlet under McMenemy Street. The specifications included hauling out the excess material and trucking it away. The cost to dry and remove the material by truck led to higher than anticipated quotes from contractors who submitted bids to complete the work. The lowest quote was $42,000. This area is designated a 'Manage C' wetland located on private property between McMenemy Street and Morrison Avenue. This wetland area is naturally occurring and differs from a stormwater pond or retention basin in that it was not engineered for a specific volume or rate of flow. As with other local water bodies, the wetland has been impacted by recent precipitation trends. The ditch and a majority of the wetland area is on private property. This wetland flows to the south where it intersects with another wetland area that flows to the east and ultimately drains into Gervais Lake. The southern end of this wetland narrows and is essentially channelized as it passes through a ditch-like area before intersecting with the wetland to the south. This area has built up with sediment and leaf compost over the years, and as a result the wetland has not been able to drain as quickly in recent years resulting in higher water levels after heavy rain events. City attorney Chad Lemmons conducted additional background research and provided a legal opinion on the City of Little Canada’s responsibilities related to this issue. According to the legal opinion, the City has no legal obligation to deal with drainage issues that are naturally occurring. The City would only be responsible if it altered the natural flow of surface water. After presenting this additional information in April, the City Council was asked to review the legal opinion and provide further direction to staff on how to proceed. Based on the legal opinion and the high cost for contractors to clean out this area, the City Council directed staff and the City Engineer to take a closer look at the impacted area to determine if a smaller project could be designed to improve the ditch and address the concerns of property owners to the north.