Little Cal watershed study tied to fee OK

In an emergency meeting Wednesday, the Little Calumet River Basin Development Commission passed a resolution to conduct a feasibility study addressing flooding in the entire watershed in Lake County.

That area includes the Deep River and Burns watersheds.

The resolution is tied to funding in House Bill 1264 for operation and maintenance of the Little Calumet River watershed. This bill would charge most Lake County property owners an annual fee for Little Calumet River levee maintenance.

That bill will be heard Thursday morning by members of the Senate appropriations committee.

Officials in Hobart and Lake Station have expressed concern that parcel fees collected in their communities as proposed in HB 1264 would only be used for the Little Calumet River flood protection system that runs from Interstate 65 west to the Indiana/Illinois state line.

The city councils in both communities passed resolutions opposing the General Assembly's consideration of the flood-control bill.

The Little Calumet commission's resolution is designed to address those concerns and create a watershed plan that looks at the entire system, Commissioner Ron McAhron said.

"This should have been done 30 years ago," Commission Chairman Bill Baker said.

However, Baker said, the commission has never had the authority and money to provide this kind of watershed plan. HB 1264 also expands the jurisdiction of the commission to give the group that authority.

The resolution states that within six months of receiving funding from the parcel fee, the Little Calumet commission would contract for a feasibility study "on the most effective and efficient means of addressing flooding with the Deep River and Burns watersheds."

Baker estimated the Lake County watershed feasibility study would cost $250,000.

Results of that study would be distributed to the Lake County Council, Lake County commissioners, the Indiana Legislative Council and the State Budget Committee.

Within six months of receiving that study, the Little Calumet commission would hold a public meeting to address the flooding issues within the Deep River, Burns and Little Calumet watersheds. Timing for flood protection methods and the expected costs of those solutions also would be discussed during the meeting.

Attempts to reach Hobart Mayor Brian Snedecor and Lake Station Mayor Keith Soderquist were unsuccessful.