Question
I have a rectangular shaped patch of grass in my front yard that dies each summer.  I found that there is a city drain pipe buried under that section.  Can that be the reason for the browning of the grass even though that section gets as much water as the rest of the yard?  What can I do to stop this, should a plant a specific type of grass in this area?

Answer
Tell me, is the drain pipe emptying at all at this point?  How deep is the pipe (I'd like to know how far it is from your Grass)?  After a rain, what kind of drainage do you see?

What kind of Grass are you growing and where in the 'Northwest' are you?

You say the Grass 'dies' each Summer -- but I get the impressiong the same Grass is growing again every Spring, yes?  no?  Please clarify for me.

Is this Grass near the Sidewalk?  Any other Grass near a Sidewalk that is coming through Summer without trouble?

I think we should figure out what's going on here.  Then you can decide if the Grass or something else needs to be changed.  You can't select a substitute groundcover without knowing what is wrong with the Grass first.  And we can figure that out.