Watershed Description

The Mallory Granger Ditch-White River Watershed drains 21,997 acres of the City of Noblesville, City of Carmel, and Town of Fishers into the White River. Twenty-one percent (21%) of this watershed is within the northwest portion of the Town of Fishers planning area, of which 73% is within the Town’s corporate limits. The major waterways within the Town of Fishers planning area include: White River, Shoemaker Drain, Weaver Drain, Home Run Creek and 6 regulated drains (Lynwood Hills Drain, Krause & Klepfer Drain, Oliver Shoemaker Drain, Castetter & Randall Drain, and Britton Branch).

This watershed urbanized between 1971 and 1999. The predominant land use (46%) in the Mallory Granger Ditch-White River Watershed is low to medium density single-family residential neighborhoods. A distinct and well-defined commercial and industrial corridor along SR-37 divides the watershed and accounts for approximately 20% of the land area. Along the east bank of the White River sits the 1,400-acre Conner Prairie Interactive History Park.

Existing Conditions and Concerns

Existing condition and concerns were gathered using a variety of data sources. All resources are referenced in Chapter 7 of this Master Plan. Supporting documentation on water quantity data listed below can be found in Appendix 2 and water quality in Appendix 3.

• Detailed floodplains studies (Zone AE) have been completed for White River and Shoemaker Drain. Approximate (Zone A) delineations exist for an unnamed tributary to Shoemaker Drain, Weaver Creek, Oliver Shoemaker Drain, and Home Run Creek.
• No additional hydrologic or hydraulic studies in this watershed were found that were pertinent to this Master Plan.
• Based on 10-year peak flow discharge values calculated for the January 2010 preliminary Hamilton County Flood Insurance Study (FIS), the modeled 10% annual chance current condition runoff rates for 2 of the subareas of the Shoemaker Drain watershed Krause Klepfer Drain watershed and downstream portion of Shoemaker Drain) are lower than the default or more restrictive allowable release rates established by the Stormwater Management Ordinance for the 11-100 year post-development conditions. The remaining subarea rates for Shoemaker Drain showed the current allowable release rates to be adequate. Sufficient existing data to compare existing condition runoff rates with Ordinance release rates was unavailable for Weaver Creek and Home Run Creek.
• There are approximately the following number of structures in the floodplain: Weaver Creek (20 structures), Home Run Creek (5 structures), and unnamed tributary to Shoemaker Ditch (5 structures), as well as 5 commercial structures along Shoemaker Ditch (3 of which are also in the floodway). 2) The structures along Weaver Creek, Home Run Creek, and the unnamed tributary to White River may be erroneously shown to be in the floodplain. 3) There are also obvious errors in the floodplain delineation along Shoemaker Ditch east of the railroad. 4) Shoemaker Ditch upstream of SR 37 has no floodplain designation in the Flood Insurance Study (FIS) even though drainage areas are greater than one square mile and the floodway is regulated under the Town ordinance and State law.
• The stream corridors are mostly wooded with good setbacks (150 to 300 feet), limited vegetation and minimal setbacks along regulated drains with the exception of Oliver Shoemaker Drain.
• A notable 6-acre palustrine, forested, broad-leaved, deciduous, seasonally-flooded wetland is located at the confluence of Shoemaker Drain and White River as well as several linear forested wetland complexes within the White River corridor.
• This watershed is considered to be fully urbanized. New/recent development includes Fishers Marketplace (100-acre commercial mixed use project) on SR 37 and 131st Street. Exit 5 Technology Park is an exclusive combination of technology-based business, company headquarters, and light industry. A portion of the 126th Street Reconstruction Project is included in this watershed.
• Based on available land use data imperviousness is estimated to be 75% which is typically indicative of poor water quality.
• Water quality monitoring conducted in 2009 at Britton Branch and Allisonville Road for this Master Plan indicates:
• Chemical – Nitrogen levels were below water quality targets while total and dissolved phosphorus concentrations were below detection limits. The Indiana State Water Quality Standard for E. coli was exceeded in 70% of the samples.
• Biological – sampling indicated an average Pollution Tolerance Index (PTI) score of 27 (excellent) indicating a diverse assemblage of macroinvertebrates.
• Physical – received highest Qualitative Habitat Evaluation Index (QHEI) score (78.5/100) due to high individual metric scores associated with substrate, in-stream cover, and channel morphology.
• Other water quality studies:
• IDNR and USGS continuously monitor groundwater levels west of the intersection of River Road and 146th St, west of the planning area.
• Indiana American Water Company monitors intake water near Allisonville Road and SR 32, outside of the planning area.
• IDEM conducted fish tissue sampling in 3 locations upstream of the planning area along the White River between 1987 and 1999.
• White River is the only waterway in this watershed that is listed on the State of Indiana 303(d) List of Impaired Streams.
• Based on available land use data for this watershed, it is anticipated that water quality in some or all water bodies is likely impacted by elevated nutrient, bacteria, total suspended solids, and metals loads.
• Dry weather screening conducted by the Town of Fishers in 2009 identified 93 outfalls (observed dry weather flow at 7 outfalls).

Known Drainage Problems or Concerns

The following were drainage problems or complaints identified in the Mallory Granger Ditch-White River Watershed by the Town of Fishers staff, recorded in the Town’s Drainage Complaint Database, or gathered during the Public Meeting. These include:

• Street Flooding (4):
  • Water ponds at 126th and N. Reynolds Drive (A8).
  • Water ponds at 126th and N. Cumberland Road (A9).
  • Street overtopping occurs during the 1% annual chance flood on Shoemaker Ditch at 131st Street (AR4) and Britton Park Drive (AR5).
• Water Quality (2):
  • Water quality is questionable in Britton Branch south of Builder’s Concrete (west of 131st and N. Britton Park Road) (C9).
  • Area with suspected septic system failure drains into retention pond and side ditches behind homes (N. Traverse Place in Sunblest Farms neighborhood) (C11).
• Pond Flooding (2):
  • Detention pond surrounded by mixed use development may not be functioning as effectively as it was originally intended (D4).
  • Pond floods business parking lot and has almost been into the business (D11).
• Streambank Erosion (1):
  • There is an issue of the stream bank along Castetter and Randall Drain (Turkel Drive between Farley Drive and Turkel Place in Sunblest Farms neighborhood)(E1).
• Localized Flooding (1):
  • Water pools on bike path along Allisonville Road south of Orchard Boulevard (east of Sunblest Farms neighborhood) (F15).