OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Lake County Drainage Board Advisory Committee Meeting - August 19, 2026

County Boards & Commissions — Wednesday, August 19, 2026
BodyLake County, Indiana
SessionCounty Boards & Commissions
DateWednesday, August 19, 2026
StatusNEW · FILED
Video Record
0:00 / 27:21
Transcript — Verbatim
0:46

We don't have an application to work.

0:49

Get your mic on.

0:55

Okay.

0:57

Emergency exit announcement.

1:06

Are you reading who's reading?

1:08

Oh, cool.

1:10

Okay, it was further.

1:14

You're on.

1:15

In case of emergency, exit the commissioner's courtroom and proceed to the stairs and go to the second floor and edit the building.

1:20

Do not enter an elevator in emergency.

1:23

If you require assistance, an employee will escort you and or assist you.

1:27

Please silence any cellular telephone during this meeting.

1:30

If you receive a call text during the meeting, please excuse yourself with as little disruption as possible.

1:35

Okay.

1:36

Roll call.

1:48

Here.

1:54

Here.

1:55

Cedar Creek Township, Alliston.

1:57

Here.

1:57

Wilbert Township, Mike Canning.

1:59

Here.

2:00

West Creek Township, Heidi Love.

2:02

Here.

2:02

Center Township, Dave Two May.

2:04

Here.

2:05

North Township, Dave Medina.

2:08

Windfield Township, Cody Row.

2:11

Eagle Township, Eagle Creek Township, Town Jersey.

2:15

I'm here.

2:16

And Ross Township and Tequa Austin.

2:20

All right.

2:21

Okay.

2:25

Close there, too.

2:27

Close here, too.

2:29

All right.

2:30

Agenda additions and there are two additions.

2:37

The surveyor responses to the objections.

2:42

And 11A2, a shareville of interlocal agreement regarding the uh Partsdale Pond area.

2:51

Okay.

2:55

So were those handouts added to our packet?

3:01

11A2 was added to your packet.

3:08

I do have five C3.

3:12

Oh that was on the top of our packet.

3:15

Yes, no.

3:19

I've got this and this.

3:21

John, no, that one says five C3.

3:23

No, it's two C threes.

3:25

These are the two handouts.

3:28

Yeah.

3:29

Okay.

3:29

The Melody Ardolph and these two.

3:34

Okay.

3:36

All right.

3:36

Other than that, the agenda is complete.

3:40

All right.

3:40

Um there it'll be a uh Hanover Digital public meeting at nine 9 a.m.

3:49

during the uh drainage board meeting.

3:52

All right.

3:53

Um I do not have the minutes.

3:55

Uh we have minutes to uh no approved time the uh the minutes are still being uh transcribed.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Water And Wastewater Management█████████████████████████████████████████████63%
Procedural███████████15%
Public Works█████████13%
Public Safety████6%
Public Comment██3%
Summary of Proceedings

Lake County Drainage Board Advisory Committee Meeting - August 19, 2026

The Lake County Drainage Board Advisory Committee met on August 19, 2026, at 8:00 AM in the Commissioners Courtroom. The meeting covered routine approvals, financial actions, and a public hearing scheduled for the Hanover Ditch project was noted but not included in the transcript (the public hearing was set for the 9:00 AM Drainage Board meeting). The committee made several recommendations for approval by the Drainage Board.

Consent Calendar

  • Minutes: The July 15, 2026 minutes were not yet transcribed; approval was deferred to the next meeting.
  • Agenda Additions: Two handouts were added: surveyor responses to objections and the Schererville interlocal agreement (Item 11A2).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were offered at the Advisory Committee meeting.

Discussion Items

  • Township Reports:
    • Hanover Township: The trustee expressed concern about the Hanover Ditch project, urging the Drainage Board to conduct a thorough cost-benefit review before allocating funds, particularly regarding Illinois water inflow. The trustee asked for a re-evaluation of the project’s necessity.
    • West Creek Township: Reported ongoing issues with John Kramer’s property (69th and Sheffield) due to overgrowth and beaver dams, requesting a site walk-through.
    • Eagle Creek Township: Noted sloughing along the Kankakee River near the county park and a more severe area near Porter County; also requested cleaning of Brown Ditch segments.
    • Cedar Creek Township: Reported that the Cantor Creek project reduced flooding complaints; requested cleanup of Cedar Creek by the Legion.
  • Little Calumet River Watershed (Items 5D1-5D7):
    • Approved recommendation to pay Austgen Equipment $706,048.76 for Hart Ditch stabilization (funded by Little Calumet River Basin Commission).
    • Approved final payment of $2,715.00 to Garup Construction for Schoon Ditch maintenance.
    • Approved payment of $47,027.08 to Dyer Construction for Turkey Creek emergency bank repair.
    • Noted award of Spring Street Ditch culvert replacement to Ellis Construction.
  • Kankakee River Watershed (Item 5C1): Approved recommendation to pay $23,145.68 for levee inspection.
  • Applications/Petitions:
    • Application 493 (Turkey Creek Lateral #5): No action due to inability to inspect.
    • Application 501 (Spring Run Ditch): No action, awaiting information.
    • Application 519 (West Creek & West Creek Lateral #1): No action.
    • Application 523 (Beaver Dam Ditch Lateral #5): Approved after revisions were made based on CBBEL review.
  • MS4 Water Quality: Approved two invoices to Delta III for juvenile detention center restoration: $15,250.00 and $18,440.33.
  • Financial Items:
    • Approved $1,209.16 to Flow Technics for Hartsdale Pond pumps.
    • Approved four invoices totaling $103,875.00 to KDM for emergency obstruction removal at Turkey Creek Lateral 6 & 7.
    • Approved $200.00 to Tom Larson for beaver relocation at Beaver Dam Ditch Lat 8.
    • Approved $200.00 to Tom Larson for beaver relocation at Hayden Ditch.
  • Bids: Received bids for the 2026 Foss Ditch 2-Stage Ditch Project (Cedar Creek Twp.).
  • Contract Amendments:
    • Approved $30,800 increase to CBBEL on-call services.
    • Approved $45,000 increase to ASI on-call services.

Key Outcomes

  • Interlocal Agreement: Approved recommendation for the county’s share of $35,009.75 for the Schererville SCADA system upgrade at Hartsdale Pond, with the Little Calumet River Basin Commission contributing $70,000+.
  • All motions were passed unanimously by the Advisory Committee (all ayes, no opposed).
  • Next Meeting: Scheduled for September 16, 2026, at 8:00 AM.

Note: The transcript does not include the 9:00 AM Hanover Ditch public hearing or the subsequent Drainage Board meeting, which were listed on the agenda.

Meeting Transcript

We don't have an application to work. Get your mic on. Okay. Emergency exit announcement. Are you reading who's reading? Oh, cool. Okay, it was further. You're on. In case of emergency, exit the commissioner's courtroom and proceed to the stairs and go to the second floor and edit the building. Do not enter an elevator in emergency. If you require assistance, an employee will escort you and or assist you. Please silence any cellular telephone during this meeting. If you receive a call text during the meeting, please excuse yourself with as little disruption as possible. Okay. Roll call. Here. Here. Cedar Creek Township, Alliston. Here. Wilbert Township, Mike Canning. Here. West Creek Township, Heidi Love. Here. Center Township, Dave Two May. Here. North Township, Dave Medina. Windfield Township, Cody Row. Eagle Township, Eagle Creek Township, Town Jersey. I'm here. And Ross Township and Tequa Austin. All right. Okay. Close there, too. Close here, too. All right. Agenda additions and there are two additions. The surveyor responses to the objections. And 11A2, a shareville of interlocal agreement regarding the uh Partsdale Pond area. Okay. So were those handouts added to our packet? 11A2 was added to your packet. I do have five C3. Oh that was on the top of our packet. Yes, no. I've got this and this. John, no, that one says five C3. No, it's two C threes. These are the two handouts. Yeah. Okay.

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