Nicollet County debates dam/ditch project

No action taken, DNR wants dam repaired

By GUY PRIEL

Journal Staff Writer

ST. PETER -- A dam located in a Nicollet County ditch was the subject of debate during a county board meeting Tuesday, but no action was taken on the issue.

The dam is located in County Ditch 46A, along the eastern edge of Little Lake, a part of a 450-acre wetland area bordered on the west by Swan Lake.

"We are progressing with information received in a letter from the (Department of Natural Resources)," County Auditor Robert Bruns said. "We are taking quick action to get the matter settled."

The matter was turned over to the county attorney because of a threat of legal action.

In studying documentation, the dam was installed prior to a 1969 control structure that was added to the dam and could possibly go back as far as 1950 when the ditch as originally dug.

"We are not sure who put the dam in," Commissioner Clete Schroepfer said. "We know it doesn't help people below the dam. There are two issues involved here and we need to do what's right."

Replacing the dam is a matter of cost that the ditch authority needs to study further, he said.

"We have never been able to find any indication that there was ever any type of payment for the dam," Commissioner Judy Hanson said.

The issue began in December 1998 when DNR officials petitioned for repairs to the ditch and the dam structure. Nothing has been done since then except for a DNR letter asking for replacement, Nicollet Conservation Club President Jeff Holman said.

The informal petition was received Jan. 26, 1999, but failed to meet the required 26 percent of landowner signatures to make it formal, so the petition was filed during a February board meeting, Hanson said.

"I don't agree that we've done nothing," Schroepfer said. "The ownership issue is still unresolved."

There has been a history of tampering with the dam, and it needs to be repaired, Holman said.

"The dam needs to be either replaced as a controlled structure or as it was originally, of stone," he said.

The key to resolving the matter is to get someone at the DNR who will act as an official spokesman so things can be settled, County Attorney Michael Riley said.

"The issue of ownership is an interesting deal," Riley said. "The dam has an interesting history. It was put in in the 1950s, and there are lots of repairs that were supposed to be done that never got done."

The commissioners will look into the matter and help the process move forward, Chairperson LaVonne Craig said.

"The county is dragging their feet on this matter," Holman said. "They are pro-drainage."

During the meeting, the commission also:

* Denied the request to lease a Harley Davidson motorcycle for use by the Sheriff's Department for civil process matters, citing safety concerns and the lack of a clear policy on usage.

* Gave approval to apply to have a portion of County Road 41 declared a part of the Minnesota Valley Scenic Byway.