Seeing Minden for the trees

The ditch that runs along County Road in Minden isn't there to water landscaping and it's not there for recreation.

It's there to transport water through the town of Minden to agricultural fields beyond.

The water that runs through the ditch doesn't belong to the town, nor to the residents. It belongs to the people downstream who put it to beneficial use on their fields, therefore preserving the agricultural open space we all enjoy.

According to the town's engineer, the ditch is in use 45-60 days out of the year, presumably during the spring and summer.

In order for the water to be put to beneficial use, the ditch must be cleaned out every year because it is open to the public. At present the ditch is full of tiny cottonwoods which will be cleared out next spring to convey water to the people who own it.

Much of the ditch is covered now. There is about 4/5 of a mile of the ditch that is open. That means an open ditch goes into a pipe, which could pose a danger to the children who play in it.

Rather than just covering up the right of way and having residents extend their landscaping over it as has been done along some parts of County Road, the town plans to install a sidewalk where people can continue to walk and enjoy the town.

In order to cover the ditch, some of the cottonwoods along County Road are going to have to be taken out. No one in Minden is particularly happy about taking out the trees, but sometimes it has to be done.