D. Engineer's Preliminary Survey Report D. Engineer's Preliminary Survey Report

D. Engineer's Preliminary Survey Report

The engineer's preliminary survey report is the avenue designated for the Engineer to report the results of the preliminary survey and associated investigations to the drainage authority. As required by Minn. Stat. § 103E.245, subd 4, “The report must give sufficient information, in detail, to inform the drainage authority on issues related to feasibility, and show changes necessary to make the proposed plan practicable and feasible including extensions, laterals, and other work".

Central to the preliminary survey report is the statement of the engineer’s assessment of the feasibility of the proposed drainage project and any potential impacts in regard to the environmental, land use and multipurpose water management considerations specified in Minn. Stat. § 103E.015, Subd. 1. The engineer's preliminary report should also include the pertinent information gathered during the preliminary survey along with preliminary plans as outlined above.

Note: Drainage Law requires that certain project features must be shown on the preliminary plans and discussed in the engineer's preliminary report. These mandates can be found in Minn. Stat. § 103E.245, Subd. 4. These items have been summarized previously in this chapter.

It is important to emphasize an important feature of the engineer's preliminary survey report. It is the statements by the Engineer related to the sufficiency (or adequacy) of the outlet. The drainage authority must make a finding at the preliminary hearing that the outlet is adequate in order to proceed with the project. This finding should be based on the engineer's analysis and conclusions as to outlet adequacy. There is no similar requirement in the final hearing. Therefore, outlet adequacy must be fully addressed in the engineer's preliminary report.

The engineer's preliminary report should contain a tabulation of hydraulic data on the proposed improvements, a tabulation of required right-of-way, an itemized project cost estimate, and a copy of the petition for the drainage project.

Note: Elements of the engineer's preliminary report are utilized for decision making purposes by different agencies with varying levels of interest and expertise. However, the primary audience of the preliminary report remains the drainage authority. It is recommended that the engineer be explicit in identifying components that are specifically called out for use by other decision makers than the drainage authority.

It is recommended that the engineer provide an executive summary at the front of the engineer's preliminary report. The executive summary should contain a brief description of the project, an overview of public benefits, land requirements, a brief outline of pertinent project data, anticipated environmental impacts, permit requirements and a summary of project costs.

Examples of engineer's preliminary survey reports can be found in Appendix 14.