JONES COUNTY
Jones County Commissioners took the final step for the purchase of Jake’s Woods and approved the receipt of the Liberty Park property at their first meeting in February.
The Feb. 7 board meeting was called to order by Chairman Chris Weidner, and the opening prayer and pledge were led by Commissioner Daylon Martin.
The first item of New Business was presented by consulting engineer Tim Ingram concerning the Union Hill Church Bridge replacement. Ingram said he assessed the bridge in the hope of finding a way to shore it up temporally, but he said the cracks and beams under the bridge were just not safe.
The engineer said the bridge would need to be replaced, which would be a lengthy process. He estimated the project would take two years. Ingram said the estimate of the cost of the project to replace the bridge was $690,000.
Martin asked if the county could go to the Georgia Department of Transportation to ask for help with the project.
Ingram said it would not hurt to try, but the state needs to fund it. He said his company is working with another county that has been waiting two years for a bridge replacement. He suggested if the county was willing to put money into the project, it could speed up the process.
Wiedner said there would still be a lot of hoops to jump through, even if the county funded the project because of required permits for the bridge and the waterway.
“It’s not like it used to be,” he said.
Margaret Thornton spoke to the commissioners about the impact the bridge closure is having on the people who depend on it. She said it was her opinion that no one cares about the bridge nor the people who live in that area.
Thornton said the bridge being out affects people who have medical emergencies and fires. She objected to the county spending the money on other projects such as bike trails, paving roads and the water system.
“Who’s responsible?” she asked.
Weidner said he understood her frustration and assured her the county was doing all it could. He said the application for the bridge replacement had been submitted to the GDOT, and he has talked to the county’s legislative delegation for their assistance in moving it along.
“The day when the county can go in and fix it has passed,” he said. “We can’t do that anymore; the state has to be involved.”
Commissioner Wendy Vaughn said in her capacity as the Director of Transportation for the Jones County Board of Education, she has to check all the county bridges for bus safety. She said the Union Hill Church bridge was out of capacity for buses before it was closed.
Commissioner John Wood said the bridge replacement was a priority, but it is a process that moves slowly.
“We are working on it, and we understand it needs to be handled quickly,” he said.
County Administrator Jason Rizner talked to the board about closing out a GEFA loan that has not been used. He reminded board members that the loan had not been used because the bids for sewer at Griswoldville Park were too high.
Rizner said, in conversation with GEFA representatives, it was suggested that the county close out that loan and make a new application for a larger amount. He added that the state provided $500,000 to help with the project, but it was still not enough.
Ingram said an additional $3 million was needed to complete the project.
At the conclusion of the discussion, commissioners agreed to postpone the agenda item until a work session could be held to consider all the available options. A tentative date for the work session was set March 7 at 4:30 p.m.
Rizner reminded board members that the deadline for Clean Water Projects were the end of this month.
The administrator also handled the next agenda item, which was the mountain bike track at the South Recreation Complex. He said a previous presentation suggested money was available to create a pump track, but there was an error in the pricing.
Parks and Recreation Director Bert Rosenberger said the track is 95 percent complete, but additional boardwalk was needed because of a wet area.
“We need to address this because we are at a critical point of the trail,” he said.
The cost of the addition boardwalk and removal of chain link fence was $31,800, which would be covered by the amount of funds remaining for the project. The total amount of SPLOST funds allotted for the project was $266,865.
Commissioner Sam Kitchens said with the bike trail, playground and Maggie Califf Gym, it is getting to the point that a parking lot is needed.
Rizner agreed and said he sketched a design, but he needs to get a cost.
Rosenberger said the area needed to be rebranded to the Mattie Wells Community Park because of all that is available there. Kitchens said he understands that the county needs to do the boardwalk. The motion for the boardwalk was made by Martin, and the vote to approve was unanimous.
Rizner said the Conservation Fund purchased the property for Jake’s Wood and has been holding it for the county. He said the board needed to approve the purchase of the property from the Conservation Fund.
The administrator said the closing on the property was scheduled for the end of the month.
The purchase price for the property that consists of 29.52 acres is $124,783. Kitchens made the motion to proceed with the purchase, and the motion was approved unanimously.
The next agenda item was the acceptance of the Liberty Park property from the Macon-Bibb County Water and Sewerage Authority. The park is located at 3683 Upper River Road and consists of 8.95 acres. Liberty Park was dedicated in October of 2008 and was the vision of former Commissioner Larry Childs, who represented Jones County’s District 1 for 20 years.
Kitchens made the motion to accept the property, and the motion was approved unanimously.
Wood requested additional hearings for upcoming Community Development Block Grants for the areas of Haddock and south Jones County because of the lack of notice given to the community for the previous hearings. Board members agreed to the hearings by consensus.
HR Director/County Clerk Shannon Wagner presented the commissioners with Short Term Disability and Long-Term Disability policies for the county. Martin made the motion to accept the policies, and the vote to approve was unanimous.
During comments by board members, Vaughn expressed her appreciation to the Public Works Department employees for their work on dirt roads during the recent rains.
“If you don’t use dirt roads, you don’t realize how rain affects them,” she said.
Weidner noted that Jones County received eight inches of rain during the month of January.
The next meeting of the Jones County Board of Commissioners is scheduled Feb. 21.
