(Spirit Lake)– The city of Milford is demanding Dickinson county address a number of concerns it has over the county’s plans to put in three additional culverts to increase capacity at the Lower Gar Outlet.
The board of supervisors Tuesday reviewed a letter from the city that outlines five demands it says will have to be met before it would be willing to sign an agreement allowing the county to proceed.
The concerns include payment of initial construction costs; payment of future costs for routine maintenance; payment for any future changes to the outlet structure; that the city of Milford be excluded from any liability along with indemnification for potential damages attributed to the project; and that the flow from the outlet be regulated.
County officials say some of the demands would be very difficult if not impossible to address, especially the one dealing with flow regulation, as that would take legislative action.
Meanwhile, some supervisors are now questioning the need of an agreement with Milford, even though it has jurisdiction over about 75 percent of the area surrounding the outlet. But Assistant County Attorney Lonnie Saunders cautioned the supervisors the city could seek a court injunction against the project should the county proceed without an agreement.
The supervisors Tuesday indicated a willingness to negotiate with the city of Milford, and that efforts be made to get support for the project from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
