Improvements Along the John Earl Drain Reduce Flooding in Eaton County
GRAND LEDGE – More than 100 years ago, the beginnings of the John Earl Drain were established within Eaton County.
Spicer Group Project Manager, Chris Mattson, P.E., oversees a new culvert being installed as part of improvements on the John Earl Drain.
This 5.6-mile-long county drain runs through the City of Grand Ledge and Oneida Charter Township, servicing 7,400 acres of land. It includes open and enclosed drains that traverse through farm fields, between residential neighborhoods, and beneath major roadways to provide a primary outlet for stormwater towards its eventual natural outlet - the Grand River.
Not all of the stormwater, however, was getting where it needed to go on the John Earl Drain.
“The original issue that was brought to our attention was flooding along Mount Hope Highway,” Eaton County Deputy Drain Commissioner Eric Deibel said. “This area was right next to the drain, but the water wasn’t getting into the John Earl fast enough and would flood.”
In 2016, residents brought a petition forward to the Eaton County Drain Commissioner Richard Wagner for an improvement project on the John Earl Drain. This petition was one of eight petitions that Wagner received that year. After the petition was submitted, Spicer Group was hired to inspect all 29,450 feet of the drain.
“We inspected the drain over three days from top to bottom,” Chris Mattson, P.E., the Project Manager for Spicer Group, said. “We walked the entire drain and learned a lot more about other issues within the drainage district.”
“We inspected the drain over three days from top to bottom...we walked the entire drain and learned a lot more about other issues within the drainage district.”
The John Earl Drain is an outlet for many other county drains in the area. Spicer Group’s drain inspection highlighted minor to moderate obstructions throughout the entire length of the drain. These obstructions caused the water flow in the drain to slow down at several points.
Deibel said this slow-moving water created a “domino” effect throughout the drainage system, making other drains within the watershed function less effectively.
Crews installed larger culverts to accommodate the flow in the John Earl Drain.
While much of the lower end of the drain needed only maintenance to remove deadfall and debris, Spicer Group’s team discovered other issues at points along the drain that were causing significant flow backup, Mattson said. This included undersized and aging culvert crossings, collapsed clay pipe, sediment-heavy open-channel drain sections, degrading channels, undersized drainage swales, and major erosion issues.
A Board of Determination hearing was held on December 14, 2016. At that hearing, Spicer Group reported on the condition of the drain. Based on the stated condition and input from residents, the Board determined that an improvement project on the John Earl Drain was necessary. The Eaton County Drain Commissioner then directed Spicer Group to begin engineering solutions for the drain.
“For this project, we utilized a number of different solutions for the drain,” Mattson said. “We improved existing open channel, replaced storm sewer, repaired major erosion, constructed new open and enclosed drains, and replaced a variety of cross culverts along the drain. We picked the approach that would be the best for each section of this drain.”
One of the major improvements made was a crossing at the Sandstone Creek Apartments, located off Jenne Street in Grand Ledge. Sandstone Creek Drive serviced the apartment complex and the drain traveled through a roadway crossing that consisted of three undersized pipes. During rain and high-water events, debris that could not flow through the narrow pipes would build up, blocking the waterway. The City of Grand Ledge would maintain the crossing by removing the debris periodically.
“By reducing the capacity here, there would be capacity issues all the way up the drain,” Mattson said.
A large 19-foot by 7-foot concrete box culvert was installed at that crossing, and major erosion issues near this portion of the drain were mitigated using stone riprap along the banks where the drain meandered through the more densely developed City properties.
At another portion of the drain, in the Fieldstone Farms neighborhood off East Saginaw Highway in Oneida Charter Township, development of the area had enclosed and relocated portions of a natural tributary channel of the John Earl Drain. The channel was located near homes, it was undersized, and was degrading–all factors that contributed to the risk of homes being flooded in the area.
Spicer Group designed a solution to acquire the channel as a new branch of the John Earl Drain. This involved easement acquisitions to move the drain further away from the homes and sizing the drain properly to accommodate the additional amount of water flowing through it.
Major culverts were also replaced along the improved drain channel at Mt. Hope Highway and Strange Highway.
Construction began on this project in June of 2019 and is scheduled to finish by November of this year. Work has been completed by two area contractors; E.T. Mackenzie Company was awarded a contract to complete all drain crossing improvements, and Precision Grade Excavating was awarded the contract to complete all the drain channel and storm sewer improvements.
The project removed log jams, excess sediment, and other obstructions through agricultural areas.
“We covered everything that needed to be worked on. All the debris that was in the drain is now clear and when construction is complete, our residents will have a well-maintained, well-constructed county drain,” Deibel said. “This project set up a very large drainage system for a lot cheaper maintenance going forward, which is a real benefit. It will be a well-functioning drain that will benefit the whole drainage system.”
Deibel said Spicer Group’s depth of team and professionalism contributed to the success of this project.
“A big benefit with Spicer is their great open line of communication. They keep me updated on a regular basis and when information is needed, I’ve never had an issue getting in contact with Spicer and getting my questions answered,” he said.
Over the past five years, Wagner said his office has been receiving six to eight petitions each year requesting major drain improvements across the County. He said he is pleased to see the John Earl Drain, which is one of the larger projects under petition, reach completion.
Completed stone riprap placement along the Drain for bank erosion protection.
“A big benefit with Spicer is their great open line of communication. They keep me updated on a regular basis and when information is needed, I’ve never had an issue getting in contact with Spicer and getting my questions answered.”