Lake County Drainage Board Meeting – February 18, 2026
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Lake County Drainage Board Meeting – February 18, 2026
The Lake County Drainage Board met on Wednesday, February 18, 2026, at the Lake County Government Center in Crown Point, Indiana. The Advisory Committee convened at 8:00 AM, followed by the Drainage Board at 9:00 AM. All three board members—Chairman Michael C. Repay, Jerry Tippy, and Kyle W. Allen Sr.—were present, along with Attorney Peter Katic and technical staff. The meeting covered current watershed projects, applications for drain work, MS4 water quality initiatives, bid openings, and financial approvals. The board acted on several recommendations from the Advisory Committee.
Consent Calendar
- Minutes: Approved the January 21, 2026 meeting minutes by a 3-0 vote.
- Permission to Open Bids/Proposals: Granted Attorney Katic permission to open bids and proposals, carried 3-0.
Reports and Correspondence
- Little Calumet River Basin Development Commission: The Surveyor reported that the commission's meeting would be held that evening and was open to the public. He thanked the commission for awarding funding for the Dyer Ditch project and for contributing to the Schoon Ditch project.
- NIRPC Press Releases: Two press releases were received regarding the 2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program and an amendment to Invest NWI.
- INAFSM Legislative Reports: Reports for January 23 and February 6, 2026 were noted. Discussion included a proposal to eliminate certain elected county offices (not including the county surveyor), which did not advance out of committee.
- INDOT Notice of Project Advancement: INDOT, in cooperation with IDOT, will proceed with improvements to the I-80/94 Borman Expressway in Lake County, Indiana, and Cook County, Illinois.
- Kankakee River Watershed: The Kankakee River Basin Yellow River Basin Development Commission Technical Advisory Committee will meet on February 20, 2026; the draft Flood Preparedness and Response Plan was distributed. The Surveyor was appointed to the planning team.
- Clearing & Snagging Crew: A report from Assistant Drainage Administrator Brown was submitted regarding monthly crew activity.
- Current Projects – Little Calumet River Watershed:
- Hart Ditch Stabilization: Austin Equipment is working; no action items.
- Schererville Ditch Maintenance: Delta III invoice #13148 for $82,178.64 was recommended by the Advisory Committee and approved.
- Schoon Ditch Maintenance: A Gariup invoice remains under review.
- Current Projects – Kankakee River Watershed:
- Brown Levee Ditch Maintenance: A change order from Delta III for hauling spoil in the amount of $29,525 was approved. The Advisory Committee noted the ditch had not been cleaned in about 100 years, and the spoils were too organic/soupy to bank. Two Delta III invoices—$106,496.25 and $155,078.25—were also approved.
- Collective Motion: After individual approvals, the board approved agenda items 5A through 5E as a block (3-0).
Applications and Petitions
- 493-11-25-I-III Turkey Creek Lateral #5, New Elliott: Applicant David Kubik requested a temporary pathway to remove junk and debris. IDEM was contacted and documented the project as a net positive. No action was taken by the board.
- 498-01-26-I-II-III Beaver Dam Ditch, Crown Point: I-65 Beacon Hill Partners, agent DVG Team, Inc., proposed an access drive and dumpster enclosure within the 75-foot drainage easement. The CBBEL review recommended approval with no conditions. The board approved the application.
- 500-02-26-I-III Bull Run Ditch, St. John: NIPSCO proposed to install a 4-inch plastic gas main under the regulated drain via directional bore at a minimum depth of 5 feet. An ASI review was presented; the transcript does not record a formal motion on this application.
MS4 Water Quality
- Juvenile Detention Center Restoration: Three proposals were opened and found to be in proper legal order:
- Delta 3 Inc.: $122,935.50
- Dyer Construction Company Inc.: $172,655.20
- Austin Equipment: $187,879.00 The board approved awarding the contract to Delta 3 Inc. based on the Surveyor's and engineer's recommendation (3-0).
- 2025 Beaver Dam Lateral 14 Structure Location and Rehabilitation Project: Final payment/retainage to Delta 3 in the amount of $10,935.00 was approved with a favorable recommendation from the Advisory Committee.
- Soil and Water Conservation District Invoices: Two invoices were approved: $5,000 for public education/outreach services (MCM 1) and $20,000 for the 2025 Agricultural Cover Crop Cost Share Program.
Financial Approvals
- Ernie Niemeyer Ditch & Levee: Two invoices totaling $400 from Tom Larson were approved for the relocation of two beavers and removal of dams—one at the Hayden Property and one at the Hunting Area (Duncan Property), each $200. Both were in the regulated drain and were favorably recommended by the Advisory Committee.
Bids and Proposals
- Beaver Dam Lateral 14 – Lake County Fairgrounds: Five bids were received from 10 invitees for the tile reconstruction project. The bids were:
- Austin Equipment Inc.: $49,522.00
- Delta 3 Inc.: $290,608.00
- Gough Inc.: $327,776.91
- Grimmer Construction Inc.: $468,800.00
- LGS Plumbing Inc.: $470,048.00 The board discussed the time-sensitive nature of the project and the importance of responsiveness over low price. A motion to allow award to the lowest most responsive bidder pending review carried 3-0.
Public Comments
- No members of the public spoke during the public comment period.
Key Outcomes
- Approved minutes and permission to open bids (both 3-0).
- Approved reports and correspondence items, including the Schererville Ditch invoice and Brown Levee change order/invoices.
- Approved application 498 (Beaver Dam Ditch) with no conditions.
- Awarded Juvenile Detention Center Restoration to Delta 3 Inc. for $122,935.50.
- Approved final payment of $10,935.00 for the Beaver Dam Lateral 14 rehabilitation project.
- Approved $25,000 in invoices to the Lake County Soil and Water Conservation District.
- Approved $400 in beaver/dam removal invoices.
- Authorized award of the Beaver Dam Lateral 14 fairgrounds project to the lowest most responsive bidder pending review.
- The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, March 11, 2026, with the Advisory Committee at 8:00 AM and the Drainage Board at 9:00 AM in the Commissioners Courtroom.
Meeting Transcript
Emergency exit announcement in case of emergency exit the commissioner's courtroom and proceed to the stairs and go to the second floor and exit the building. Not enter an elevator in an emergency. If you require assistance, an employee will escort and or assist you. Please silence any cellular telephones during this meeting. If you receive a call or text during this meeting, please excuse yourself with as little disruption as possible. Thank you, Attorney Kate. Um let the record show that all three members are present and accounted for. We have additions lesions. No, no. Okay. Oh, yeah, there are proposals. Is there a motion to uh allow attorney case to open this? Move to move. Move to uh give attorney candidate permission to hold this. Second. Well the director show the motion carries 3-0 and uh attorney can open the food proposals. Yes, sir. Then I would move to approve the minutes for the January 21st meeting. Second. Thank you. Let the record show the motion carrier is 3-0. Uh item number five is reports in correspondence surveyor's office. Thank you. One little caddy river basin development commission's meeting this evening. Again, it's open to the public. I would also like to recognize and thank the Little Cal Commission. Uh they had a special meeting this past uh week for awarding project. We were one of the recipients of those. So we have additional funding now for the Dyer Ditch project. Uh they've also contributed for the schoon ditch project. Uh so uh thanks to the local commission for helping helping with uh some of these projects to make it go further. Um item 5b2, uh NERPSE press release. There are two of them regarding uh the uh transportation improvement program. Item 5B3, the Indian Association of Flood Plain and Stormwater Management's legislative reports for uh for January and February again, these deal with bills legislation uh with regard to drainage. Uh so in ask them keeps uh us as members uh aware of any items that uh are of interest to us and where they're headed, as well as the uh proposed uh elimination of elected uh county offices uh well just because a lot of surveyors are involved here that did not get out of committee. I'm not sure. I don't hear that from comments. So you can just talk with me for uh funny things funny things can happen during the end of the session. That's sure. What were they trying to get rid of? Uh county offices uh the surveyor wasn't one of them, was it? Were they surveying reporter everything but the prosecutor clerk and don't they do that every year? Yes, every year. Yeah. So all my lobbying paid off, I guess. Say that too loud. Item four, I'm uh N DOT's notice of project advancement. Uh NDOT and IDOT are cooperating on a project 89 uh 8094. Uh it's going to be uh a lot of construction in the next couple of years, uh a lot of improvements uh according to them. Uh cooperative project 29.
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