Stormwater Master Plan - Highland, IN
The Town of Highland Board of Sanitary Commissioners retained NIES Engineering, Inc. to prepare a master plan of stormwater system improvements required to address existing stormwater drainage problems and allow for future development of remaining undeveloped land areas.
The master plan involves updating existing stormwater control ordinances to coordinate more closely with Lake County Stormwater Control Ordinances. The project started with obtaining improved mapping including a regional coordination effort to obtain GIS maps of the Town showing one-foot contour intervals, as well as planimetric features such as roads, sidewalks, homes, garages and driveways. Existing storm sewer atlas maps in AUTOCAD were then updated based on field survey data and recent improvement drawings. Existing stormwater drainage systems in the known problem areas are being analyzed using the HYDROCAD Version 5.11 computer software program and TR-20 unit hydrograph procedures to determine stormwater runoff. Alternative stormwater improvements, such as stormwater relief sewers or detention facilities, are then evaluated based on performance and cost. Similar procedures are used to size storm sewers and detention facilities in undeveloped areas.
The Master Plan project includes coordination with Lake County in a regional approach to cleaning and widening regulated waterways as well as reviewing opportunities for increasing on-stream storage detention of stormwater. Some of the identified improvements involve enhancements to drainage waterways, such as the Cady Marsh Ditch and Spring Ditch, within the Town of Highland.