A split Porter County Council voted Tuesday to move forward with a stormwater fee already approved by the Board of Commissioners that will take effect Jan. 1 for unincorporated portions of the county.
Councilwoman Sylvia Graham, D-at-large, who raised several concerns about the fee, including its impact on low-income residents, voted against the measure, as did Council President Dan Whitten, D-at-large.
Whitten said after the meeting he wanted more time to consider the fee before moving forward.
“We just got the proposal and I wanted more time to look at it,” he said.
The Porter County Commissioners approved the fee on second reading earlier in the day. Public hearings were held on the matter in mid-November by the commissioners and the county’s stormwater management board, which is comprised of the commissioners and Surveyor Kevin Breitzke.
The fee, a way to raise money to meet unfunded federal and state clean water mandates, is projected to raise $3.5 million a year for drainage projects. The fee structure for residences is $10 per month to $15 per month depending on the size of the parcel.
The stormwater fee would replace the “ditch tax” now in place in about half of unincorporated Porter County. Another swath of incorporated parts of the county, about 24 percent, will pay the fee for the first time.
Though the council meeting was not a public hearing, the council did entertain comments from the audience, which mostly focused on whether there would be exemptions for land conservation groups with land that holds and cleans stormwater before it’s released.
While there are no exemptions from the fee, there is an appeal process that can go before the stormwater management board, said Planning Director Robert Thompson, through which a fee can be decreased after an inspection.
A drainage study five years ago ranked the county’s 10 worst drainage problems, seven of which are in areas that are not currently paying the ditch tax. Funds raised by the drainage fee will help tackle those projects, the cost of which runs into the millions of dollars.
“We can’t just be throwing a little piece of money from this pot and a little piece of money from this pot and expect to get anything done,” said Councilwoman Karen Conover, D-3rd, who said she’s been paying the ditch tax for about 10 years.
The county’s conservancy districts have not yet opted into the new stormwater plan. Twin Creeks Conservancy District includes South Haven, an area with some of the county’s worst flooding during heavy storms.
“I was hoping the conservancy districts were farther along in the conversation,” said Councilman Jeremy Rivas, D-2nd, which includes South Haven. “I don’t know if I want to do a fee without them.”
Conservancy districts have been included in talks about the fee for a couple years and are willing to participate but wanted the county to have its plan in place first, said council attorney Scott McClure, who also serves as attorney for the stormwater management board.
“This is basically going to the conservancy district and saying, ‘We’re now ready to be a full partner. How do you want to handle it?’,” McClure said.
Amy Lavalley is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
