Surveyor presents Aura Bowler reconstruction plan; board sets July 9 hearing and discusses funding

The DeKalb County surveyor's office presented a reconstruction proposal for the Aura Bowler watershed at the May 7 meeting, including a Foresight engineer estimate of $776,367 for the combined reconstruction, a proposed maintenance-rate change and a timetable for hearings and bids.

The surveyor's representative (S6) said the proposal would combine the J W Jackman drain into lateral 3, shift a lateral north of the tracks, and include a railway crossing estimated at about $400,000 (jack-and-bore) that would be billed to the adjacent right-of-way owners rather than the watershed. The surveyor estimated reconstruction would amount to roughly $1,296 per acre and described a maintenance-rate restructure to a $10 base rate (proposed new totals of $20 per residential acre and $30 per commercial acre) that would increase annual maintenance revenue to about $7,548 once reconstruction is complete; the rate would not be collected during the first five years after reconstruction to avoid overburdening landowners.

Board members discussed scheduling and hearing logistics and agreed that the project should wait until after crops are harvested; they set a public hearing for July 9, 2026, to accept public comment, receive bids and move the project forward in the fall bidding cycle. The surveyor said the project likely would not start until the November construction window following a September bid acceptance timeline.

Next steps: the surveyor will finalize materials, coordinate review with county staff, publish notice for the July 9 public hearing and return with final hearing materials and recommended assessments.