Kokomo duplex development in jeopardy

Jun. 8—A 20-unit duplex development planned for the city's southwest side is in jeopardy after the developer failed to receive an easement from a neighboring property owner.

Rick Singh and his attorney Brian Oaks were in front of the Howard County Drainage Board on Monday seeking some kind of resolution to a problem that threatens to derail the entire residential development.

Singh has plans to purchase a slightly more than three-acre plot of land on West Lincoln Road next to Ladd Dental Group so he can build 10 buildings with two units each. According to development plans presented earlier this year, the duplexes will be a mixture of two- and three-bedroom units with a one-car garage for each unit, and rent would be between $1,700 to $2,000 a month.

The plan was to receive an easement from the owners of the adjacent Lincoln Medical Park so residents of the duplexes could legally enter the residential community off of Dixon Road. That plan, however, fell apart after a majority of the medical offices changed ownership. The new owner, based out of Florida, is not at all interested in giving an easement.

"We said 'How much do you want?' because that's usually the American way of getting something done, and they're not interested in that either," Oaks said. "They just don't want cars going on and off their properties."

The only option at this point is access from Lincoln Road to the north. But there's a problem: the Kitty Run regulated drain that runs along the southside of Lincoln Road.

Singh would like to construct a road across the drain. His hired engineer, Kevin Steely, of Terra Site Development, has pegged the cost of placing a road crossing with a 48-inch culvert under the road to facilitate the continuation of flow of water of the regulated drain at $150,000, a price Singh is willing to pay. Oaks added that Singh is also open to paying for the future maintenance costs of that section of the drain for some set of time.

The Howard County Surveyor's office is open to considering a private road being built over the drain, but in return it wants Singh to enclose the drain from Whitehorse Drive to where the drain is no longer open and runs under Lincoln Road, a stretch of a little more than half a mile.

Howard County Surveyor Dave Duncan and Greg Lake, county stormwater district administrator, said Monday they prefer enclosing that stretch of the drain because they feel it would be the best option both aesthetically (nearby property owners have fielded numerous complaints about overgrowth in the drain) and for the long term maintenance and integrity of the ditch.

Duncan said the ditch hasn't given the county any problems, such as erosion, except the need to occasionally mow overgrown grass. He would like it to stay that way.

Any changes to the ditch that are not well thought of run the potential of destabilizing it and causing a number of other problems, including negatively affecting nearby Lincoln Road, Lake added.

"My office feels that with the continued complaints, increased maintenance cost and the fact that we would want to change a stable ditch design to accommodate a private crossing, those are the reasons that justifies us to say that this needs to be enclosed," Duncan said.

The estimated cost to enclose the drain is $580,000, an amount that Singh is not willing to fully cover himself. Oaks said Singh is willing to contribute $150,000 toward the $580,000 and proposed that the city, county and Kokomo School Corporation chip in as well to help cover the rest of the cost.

A meeting for May 31 was scheduled between the developer, county, city, Kokomo City Council and Kokomo schools in hopes of reaching a financial agreement to enclose the drain.

Oaks said he, Singh, the property's real estate agent Jennifer Newell, Howard County Commissioner Jack Dodd and Jon Pyke, department head for the city of Kokomo's engineering department, all attended, but no representative from Kokomo schools attended. An agreement was not able to be reached at the meeting.

"No one has money, I understand, but it just seems to me pretty arduous to ask a developer to develop something he doesn't even own or isn't going to use for the benefit of the county and for people who don't like seeing grass in the ditch," Oaks said. "That doesn't seem to be a developer's responsibility. It seems to be a government responsibility."

No decision one way or another was made at Monday's Drainage Board meeting.

Oaks said he would instruct Steely to run hydraulic calculations for the Kitty Run drain in hopes to nail down exactly what size pipe needs to be placed under the road crossing. Those calculations and determination are expected to be presented at the board's next meeting June 19.

Whether or not it will be enough to sway the Surveyor's Office remains to be seen. While Oaks and Singh are hoping to get Drainage Board approval for constructing the private road over the open drain, Duncan said he believes state law makes it clear that he is the only one who can make that decision.

"I feel like if this board overrules what we say, that is an overreach," Duncan said, citing IC 36- 9-27-72©. That part of Indiana state law states, "A private crossing, control dam, or other permanent structure may not be placed over or through an open drain unless the plans and specifications for the structure are first approved by the county surveyor."

Tyler Juranovich can be reached at 765-454-8577, by email at tyler.juranovich@kokomotribune.com or on Twitter at @tylerjuranovich.