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CITY, ND – (NewsDakota.com) An underground culvert 7 to 9 feet in diameter installed in 1963 under the former Miller Motors parking lot near the I-94 off ramp of exit 290 is on the verge of failing in the future as low spots form in the parking lot.
Property owner Casey Stoudt Jr., expressed his frustration about the situation as he discussed the problem with state, county and city officials on Monday, March 14th in Valley City.
Stoudt told the group that his goal is to work with all entities to reach a reasonable resolution.
Stoudt wanted to dispel a rumor that the company plans to seek a lawsuit. He says that’s absolutely false. Stoudt says the reason we hired a lawyer was to seek guidance and find out what are rights are concerning this situation.
Stoudt says the issue surfaced as the company was in the process of selling the property to a prospective buyer and after we had to have the land platted we learned there was an underground culvert installed by the previous owner the late Paul Bjornson 53 years ago.
Right now city engineer Eric Gilbertson says there are five options:
1. Do nothing.
2. Open trench it at a cost between $150,000 to $200,000.
3. Repair the bad spots at a cost of $200,000 to $300,000 which would last for about five years.
4. Realign the culvert at a cost of $1 million.
5. Totally replace the culvert at a cost between $1.3 million to $1.4 million.
Meanwhile others are worried about how the proposed Hobart Lake drain project will affect this culvert that drains water into the Sheyenne River.
The area is right next to the Interstate 94 exit 290 off ramp. Stoudt asked North Dakota Department of Transportation District Supervisor John Thompson is the state could help resolve this issue. Thompson said being the culvert is on private property the project isn’t eligible for state funding.
Additional meetings will be held in the future to look for a resolution. The diagram below illustrates were the underground culvert is underneath the former Miller Motors parking lot.