FORT MADISON – The drainage issues being caused by construction of the PORT trail near Gethsemane Cemetery surfaced again Tuesday night at the Fort Madison City Council meeting when Lee County Supervisor Tom Schulz asked the city to take over maintenance of the road that runs parallel to the trail.
Schulz spoke during the public comment time and, when he asked the council and mayor if they had any questions, he was cut off by Mayor Matt Mohrfeld saying the discussion wasn’t part of the agenda so there would be no questions. Schulz told the Mayor that’s not how the law works.
Schulz said he wanted to bring the conversation back around to one of compromise.
“What I’m hoping to do today is bring closure and sanity to something that’s become difficult and overblown,” he said.
Schulz is a former Fort Madison City Councilman and said he’s examined the trail area when it was dry and when it was raining and said the city’s engineer on the project “absolutely ignored” the drainage requirements.
He said the former drainage system prior to the trail was adequate but engineering on the trail construction has left county property damaged.
“It was an oops moment and I met with some city staff and it was my opinion at the time we should hold the engineering firm liable for those design errors. I would guess at this point that we’re well past that,” he said.
He also said the county does have an issue with the situation and brought some proposals to the city including the annexation of the property. Schulz said he tried to craft an olive branch to allow the groups to continue to get along as agencies.
The county and the city have a 28E agreement which would require the city to restore the drainage system that was there previously and relocate the trail.
“Nobody wants to see that happen. I don’t want to see that happen and I can’t speak for the entire board of supervisors who begrudgingly came to the position we are in now. I believe I can influence them to move past this,” Schulz said.
“All we are asking the city to do at this point is to do basically what the city is already been doing. The city has taken over snow removal and some general maintenance on that street already. Part of that street, quite frankly, belongs to you. It’s adjacent to your property and it wasn’t properly annexed, but I’m sure it will be as time goes forth.”
He asked the council to review the proposal again so taxpayers don’t have pay for litigation or relocation of the trail.
“Let reason rule rather than cry havoc and release the dogs of war,” he said.
The council did have a discussion item on the agenda, which Mohrfeld pointed out to Schulz, but the Supervisor had prior engagements and left before the council got to the agenda item.
As part of that discussion, Bousselot talked about the drain that had been installed in the ditch next to Gethsemane to help storm water stay off 302nd Avenue where it has been draining and causing damage. Fort Madison Public Works Director Mark Bousselot said the drain is part of what the county has been wanting.
The county claims the drainage issues were caused by the construction of the PORT trail, while the city claims the county signed off on the construction plans prior to construction starting.
Mohrfeld encouraged the council to leave the issue in the hands of City Manager Laura Leigois and Bousselot who’ve been negotiating with the council.
Lee County Attorney Ross Braden sent a letter dated May 6 to the city as a follow-up to a letter he sent on Feb. 6 pertaining to the drainage problem.
The letter states the county’s intent to file a claim in North Lee County District Court to enforce the 28E which outlines the city’s responsibility in maintaining the county’s original drain structures if construction impacts drainage to the point where it damages county roadways.
The letter also leaves an opening for the city to agree to take over all maintenance of 302nd Avenue in lieu of legal action.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here