HURON – Cost-sharing assistance of $5,000 for the town of Hitchcock for a new generator for its lift station is among a total of $160,330 in funding approved by the James River Water Development District.
The district board of directors also approved a $995,460 operations budget for 2019.
Before approval, the board held a public hearing. No written or public comments were received. The district will request $987,660 in property taxes payable in 2019.
In other cost-sharing assistance, the district awarded $26,999 to landowners in Mayfield Township to repair three dams above Mission Hill in Yankton County that store about 16-acre feet of water.
It awarded $9,731 to a landowner in Molan Township to repair a dam four to five miles above the James River in Hutchinson County. The dam acts like a sediment dump for acres above it.
The district awarded $3,600 to the Aurora County Highway Department for engineering, design and bank stabilization to replace a structure in Plankinton Township.
Also, it awarded $86,000 to the city of Yankton for engineering and bank stabilization on Marne Creek.
High water flows and heavy rains in the last few years have caused significant erosion on the banks of the creek near the Burleigh Street bridge.
Significant erosion has also occurred on the banks of the creek near the Highway 50 bridge.
The district awarded $12,000 to Ducks Unlimited to develop a wetland habitat in Spink County. The project will improve water quality while controlling runoff entering Cottonwood Lake. Two embankments will be built along a previously constructed drainage ditch that enters the lake.
Also, $17,000 was awarded to the Whittenburg Ditch District to clean out the main ditch and two branches. It runs directly into two separate dams, which will reduce the amount of sediment entering the James River and stabilize the speed of water flowing into the river.
