Forgiveness after fact won’t come easy for contractors and homeowners in Jasper

Jasper — Alan Brescher appeared before the Jasper Board of Public Works on Tuesday to request a variance for a property his son, Pat Brescher, owns in the Diamond Ridge Estates. Pat was out of town the day of the meeting and couldn’t appear.

The board was concerned about a 48-inch wide galvanized steel drainage pipe Brescher was in the process of installing when a city crew stopped the project. According to City Engineer Chad Hurm, the pipe was rolled into a drainage ditch and the Breschers were backfilling it when the city crew noticed it.

According to Mr. Brescher, the property has two other galvanized steel pipes installed on the property and they thought it would be okay to proceed with their project using the same material.

Unfortunately, those original steel pipes remained from when the property fell under the county’s requirements for drainage. When the city annexed the area, they allowed the pipe to remain, however any new projects would have to be to the city’s standards and the city requires plastic rather than steel.

One of the reasons the city requires plastic for drain lines is due to problems associated with the steel pipes corroding in the soil. Currently, Huntingburg is in the process of applying for a grant to assist in the repair of a water main responsible for supplying about 40 percent of the city’s water from Patoka Regional Water and Sewage District. The steel line has corroded so badly the city is concerned about future breaks impacting the water supply for the city. Jasper is facing similar repairs to its stormwater system in the near future.

Additionally, the location of the pipe on Brescher’s property causes it to run anywhere from three feet to 0.40 feet into a city easement.

During the meeting, Alan Brescher asked the board to consider an agreement that the property owner would be responsible for all repairs on the line, but the board was reluctant to do so based on problems associated with future property owners.

Mayor Terry Seitz, appearing upset at having to deal with another encroachment or disregard of city regulations regarding construction standards, stated, “I find the disregard of city rules from vendors comes before this board far too often. I don’t like to deal with these. We have to. It is our job. But it shouldn’t have to come to this point.”

Seitz recommended the board deny the request based on the fact that the project was not properly permitted, is installed in an easement and the pipe is not up to city code. The board agreed unanimously and Brescher will have to remove the pipe and go through the proper procedures to install the correct pipe.

Mayor Seitz stated the city has ordinances for various reasons and many times those reasons are founded in experiences such as the galvanized pipe in this occurrence. “Ultimately it’s about public safety or standards put in place for the public good.”

Seitz stated a lot of this could be avoided if the property owners, contractors and developers would come to the city before proceeding with any project.