Any sump pump, private drain and/or downspout drain should be discharged into a vegetated area outside of the road right of way. In most cases the drain can have a pop up valve installed at the end of the pipe in order to allow the force of the water to open the valve to discharge the water onto the ground. This action keeps the area around the discharge point from being wet and saturated all of the time and also allows the soils to absorb the water naturally and keeps it from entering the storm sewers system, thus reducing the amount of runoff to the often inundated storm sewers.

The City does not have the resources or equipment to remove any debris from creeks. However, if the creek or ditch is a "REGULATED DRAIN" the Vanderburgh County Surveyor's Office can provide assistance in removing blockages as well as construction or reconstruction of a "Regulated Drain". In addition if the blockage or obstruction is at a "BRIDGE", the Vanderburgh County Engineer's Office an assist in getting Maintenance Crews to remove the debris.

A "Regulated Drain" means an open drain, a tiled drain or a combination of the two. By Statute (Indiana Code 36-9-27) the Vanderburgh County Surveyors Office is responsible for maintenance, construction, and reconstruction of all regulated drains. The description and location of all regulated drains can be found in the Surveyors Office.

The definition of a right of way is: A right to make a way over a piece of land, usually to and from another piece of land. A right of way is a type of easement granted or reserved over the land for transportation purposes; this can be for a highway, public footpath, railway, canal as well as electrical transmission lines, oil and gas pipelines. A right of way is reserved for the purposes of maintenance or expansion of existing services with the right of way.

Yes. Any work that is performed within the designated City Road Right of Way must obtain a Permit from the City Engineer's Office. The forms are available on the City Engineer's webpage at www.evansvillegov.org. There are no fees for the permits, however, a detailed drawing showing the location of the work, the type of work, type of materials used etc. must e provided with the application. These applications are then presented to the Board of Public Works at their meetings which are held every Thursday at 1:30 PM in Room #321, Civic Center Complex, Evansville, IN.

The City of Evansville only has jurisdiction over drainage issues that are located within drainage easements and/or road right of way. If there is a drainage issue that exists on your private property it is the property owner's responsibility to correct or create positive drainage. However, if there is a "Drainage Easement" on your property these reservations are made to allow the appropriate maintenance and improvements of drainage within these easements, but these issues are prioritized and the City would have to find funding for the improvements.

Most of the retention/detention ponds are located within an easement which in most cases are set up for the property owners or the homeowners associations to maintain. You can check your Restrictive Covenants of your subdivision to determine which situation your property would fall. Restrictive Covenants are found in the Vanderburgh County Recorders Office.

If an alley is unimproved the maintenance falls on the adjoining land owners.

There is a packet available in the City Clerk's Office that is the responsibility of the property owners to fill out. The City Clerk will distribute the copies to the proper agencies to determine if the right of way is necessary. It is then forwarded to the City Council for action.

Ditches that are located in the road right of way are typically there for drainage purposes. If you would like to place a culvert or pip in the ditch it must be approved by the City Engineer's Office. A construction permit would have to be approved. The Construction Permits are available on the City of Evansville webpage www.evansvillegov.org (City Engineer/Permits and Construction/ Construction Permits). There are no fees for the permits, however, a detailed drawing showing the location of the work, the typeof work, type of materials used etc. must be provided with the application. In addition drainage calculations must be provided to support the pipe size that is being requested.