§ 26-503

(a) On receipt of a copy of the plan from the county commissioners or county council, a board of viewers shall:

(1) (i) engage the services of a private engineer; or

(ii) use the services of an engineer of a local, State, or federal unit of government;

(2) enter and view, with the individuals described in item (1) of this subsection, the land described in the petition;

(3) make careful and thorough examination of the land described in the petition and of other land if necessary to locate properly the project that is the subject of the petition;

(4) include in the area of the proposed drainage association all land that would be benefited and exclude any land described in the petition that it determines would not be benefited by the proposed improvement;

(5) conduct surveys to determine the boundaries and elevations of the area and to develop a plan for the project; and

(6) lay out on the ground a plainly and substantially marked line of each ditch or drain or other improvement that it considers necessary.

(b) A board of viewers shall consider as damages, without regard to any benefit that would result from the proposed drainage project:

(1) the value of land taken for construction of the proposed drainage project;

(2) inconvenience imposed by the construction of the proposed drainage project; and

(3) other lawfully compensable damages.