At Monday’s regular meeting of the Washington County Board of Supervisors, members of the Riverside Drainage District Commission discussed a Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) matching grant for funds to improve drainage and Canal No. 6.
The discussion resulted in a decision voted upon by the BOS 4 to 1, to postpone approval of financial assistance in the amount of $356,000 until after the commission meets with the Greenville City Council to discuss the grant opportunity.
Virgil Sandifer, secretary of the commission pointed out a provision in the 2018 Farm Bill under the NRCS that allows local drainage districts to apply for grants that help with drainage issues.
“As you know, the City of Greenville has a drainage problem and we (Riverside Drainage District Commission) are committed to try and help alleviate that problem.” Sandifer said.
The bill Sandifer referred to requires the grant applicant to produce 30% of the matching funds and the remaining 70% to be produced by NRCS.
“So, what we are asking from the Board of Supervisors is to help us get at least the 30%,” Sandifer proposed, adding the commission will ask the same of the Greenville City Council at its regular meeting.
Drainage commission member Bill Burle shed some light on the specifics of the drainage issue.
“The commission has had problems with drainage in Ditch No. 6 that travels from Highway 82, south of the Cypress Preserve intersection to northeast of the Highway 1 and 454 intersection,” he explained.
Burle continued to explain the section the commission is focusing on poses a problem as far as access and maintenance.
“It’s approximately 3,200 feet and this section has a lot of vegetation, trees and it promotes beaver activity so we have a number of dams over there,” he said.
The commission is proposing to pave Ditch No. 6 which travels from the Cypress Preserve and Highway 82 intersection to northeast of the Highway 1 and 454 intersection, which meanders through residential and agricultural property (Bayou Road).
As the ditch borders both sides of residential development, there is difficulty accessing the site, Burle noted.
“When we do clean it, it’s very cumbersome and time consuming,” he added.
Burle said paving the proposed section will remove the vegetation, minimize beaver activity and improve hydraulics, in addition to creating viable access.
For direct and indirect cost of the project, the commission is applying for a total of $3,623,428.
BOS Vice President Lee Gordon said ever since he’s been in office, there have been some real issues with Lake Manor and other parts near Bayou Road.
“It’s a lot of growth back there and a lot of problems getting equipment back there and keeping that clean,” he said. “We just need to try to move forward in trying to take care of that,” noting that he receives a number of calls about the area when it rains.
Gordon also said that he does not think the drainage issue will get any better as it is ongoing.
Burle said they initially were going to pave all the way from Highway 82, south of Cypress Lane to Tennessee Gas Road, but the cost exceeded the maximum amount of what they could apply for —$10 million — with the Regional Conservation Partnership Program, which is under the umbrella of the NRCS.
“By paving that, it reduces erosion and makes it easier to maintain, but we had to trim it to an amount the district could manage,” he noted.
Board president Carl McGee pointed that 100% of the project is within the corp limits of Greenville and asked Burle to explain the impact or the improvement that would be seen outside the corp limits of Greenville.
Burle responded, “It will help convey the drainage from Greenville better toward the county.”
More specifically, in a system that is collecting runoff, Burle explained that by reducing the maintenance hours on the proposed section of Ditch No. 6, it will free up men and equipment to address issues outside the corporate limits of Greenville.
“What is the impact once you improve the drainage in this area?” McGee posed.
Burle said that even though all of the improvements that are being proposed are within the city limits of Greenville, making improvements by working upstream and addressing it now will improve drainage downstream as well as avoid obstructions.
BOS attorney Willie Griffin asked if it was a time-sensitive matter and Sandifer and Burle confirmed that it was.
Burle said the grant application was originally due Nov. 4, but believes the deadline application has now been moved to Nov. 30.
Gordon asked if the commission intends to proceed with the grant application even if the BOS approves a contribution to the matching funds and the city does not.
Sandifer and Burle indicated the commission would proceed.
McGee recommended the BOS postpone and take no immediate action until they heard of the City of Greenville’s position on the matter.
Gordon disagreed with McGee’s recommendation and said, “They’re moving forward whether the city does anything or not. A third of that will be $356,000 and I think we have an issue in which a lot of times, we just put stuff off and this thing is time sensitive.”
Gordon made a motion to approve the $356,000 contribution from the county on the grounds that the matter was time-sensitive, but died due to the lack of a second.
District 4 Supervisor Mala Brooks agreed with McGee in that the matter should be revisited pending the City of Greenville’s position and moved that the approval of the contribution be postponed until then.
Supervisor Jerry Redmond seconded the motion which carried 4 to1 with Gordon voting opposed.
The Greenville City Council was set to meet Tuesday afternoon, after the Delta Democrat-Times’s press time.
