Storm Water Runoff Property Rights

[Dougrobin]

I recently purchased a lot that has been vacant for a number of years in a small town in Missouri. I have been told that water flows across the property during heavy storms. I intend to raise the level of the property when I build. The town utility manager suggested that I don't do this as the back flow may affect other owners. The cause of this backup is that all the water flow in the area has been directed by the city to flow across my lot, by the placement of a drainage pipe across a road that pushes the flow onto the property. There are drainage ditches around three edges of the property, including where the pipe is located, but instead of directing the water down the ditch, it goes onto my place.
My question is this, is the city responsible for fixing this flow problem, since they have directed the water and their drainage ditch does not contain the flow adequately? If it flows on the property by their design, are they liable for my right to enjoy my property? (this is all under the assumed circumstance that they do not volunteer to fix the problem). Should I be concerned when I begin to build about the potential back up of water by my stoping the flow of water across my lot? Any help with this would be greatly appreciated, Thank You, Doug.

 

[HomeGuru]

I sure wish that you had hired a civil engineer to complete due diligence before you bought the property. I would not buy a property like that until all documents were reviewed by the engineer, the engineer completed a site inspection and gave the go-ahead. I suggest that you have these tasks completed first then ask the questions.

 

[Wgoodrich]

Not a lawyer.

Drainage laws are usually State or Local in nature. Your State may vary in those laws from my State. In my State we have no law forbidding or even limiting a propetry owner from raising the level of their land. However we do have a law that you can not block the natural flow of storm drainage. I wonder, are the ditches you speak of a part of a legal drain, a road or street side ditch? If these drains are legal drains then there should be a fund maintained by your County surveyor for maintainance of those legal drains. You might want to check with your County Surveyor to see where you stand there if you have one in your area. If you have no laws forbidding your raising of your land then you could design a subsurface drain to divert the storm drainage to the ditches or just raise your land and let the repercussions come if they do.
If it were me, I would contact the County Surveyor, your legal counsel for advice and research of the laws governing your area, and even contact your waste water treetment plant supervisor and your plan director if you have any of these governing your property. They should be able to guide you in the right direction.

Good Luck

Wg