FAQ Group Drain Projects

If you believe that an official county drain would be beneficial to your property or would like to request maintenance of an existing county drain, please feel free to contact the Drain Commissioner’s Office for additional information and guidance.

Michigan Drain Code allows the Drain Commissioner to expend, without petition, up to $5,000 per mile per drain in any one year for maintenance and repair.

Land owners and municipalities within a given Drainage District pay for drain projects within the district. The cost of the project is shared by all the property owners within the district. Each property will be assigned its share, which is…

If the Board of Determination determines a drain project is necessary, the Drain Commissioner decides how to solve the problem. He may contract out various parts of the project, including engineering analysis, project management, and construction.

Since the scope of the project may not be fully defined at the time of the Board of Determination meeting, drain projects may change in scope. The project may get larger or smaller.

If the Board of Determination determines a drain project is necessary, any aggrieved person has 10 days to appeal but they may only appeal the finding of necessity, since that is the only issue the Board of Determination is acting…

Notices for the Board of Determination hearings are sent to all property owners who own land within a current drainage district and whose lands are proposed to be added to the drainage district. All interested persons may testify at the…

Once petitioned, a "Board of Determination" convenes. The Board of Determination is a three-member board appointed by the Drain Commissioner. The members must be residents of the County but cannot own property in the Drainage District or in the Township…

A petition can be filed by property owners in the Drainage District, a Township/City/Village, and the County Road Commission or the Michigan Department of Transportation.

Generally, drain projects are started when a "petition" is submitted to the Drain Commissioner. The petition states that a drainage problem exists and the petitioners would like the Drain Commissioner to solve the problem. A petition can be filed on…