Foursquare Neighborhood Band

After they purchased the 4-1/2 acre lot, Boomer did a rough survey of the elevation. A large low area ran across the western edge, and it was covered with reed canary grass, which is typically found in low, wet areas.

According to the USDA soil maps, the soil type in the low area was Drummer. For siting a septic field, the saying is "Drummer is a bummer." It has a high percentage of clay and drains poorly. But with drain tiles added, it makes highly fertile farmland. In this case, there was nowhere to drain the water to, since it was at the bottom of a bowl. So he suspected that it would flood during particularly wet springs. But why did their neighbors already have a pole barn located there? 

Land use planners say, "There are two basic rules in land use planning. First, water runs downhill. And second, it runs downhill faster on a hard surface." 

It was an old subdivision, and back then, when the land was subdivided, they didn't pay enough attention to water drainage. As a result, when they platted the sub, they created a lot on which the only buildable homesite was located on the other side of a seasonal lake. 

Some years, the neighbor's barn was sitting in water a foot deep, and their neighbors needed to use a rowboat to get to their house.