COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
The Jones County Board of Commissioners started 2024 with a work session on roads, followed by their first Tuesday business meeting.
Board Chairman Chris Weidner called the meeting to order and led the prayer and pledge. All commissioners were present, including Commissioner Sam Kitchens, who was ill at home but joined via Zoom.
Weidner turned the work session over to County Administrator Jason Rizner.
The Pavement Assessment Report was created by Firststep Management Techniques.
Rizner said the company rode and videoed all Jones County streets. He said they generated a report that is broken down by feet and by category and also gives each road a score of its condition.
Consulting engineer Tim Ingram said the company also provided a book with snapshots of the road and reports.
Rizner said some of the roads in the report were in the city, and others were private roads. He said those roads do not need to be considered. The roads were graded as excellent, good, fair, critical and lost.
The administrator said the report will be instrumental in determining the use of the 2024 LMIG funds from the Georgia Department of Transportation. He said the GDOT portion of the repairs is $734,000, and the county’s match would bring the total amount to $954,200.
Rizner said board members will need to come up with an approach of how to use the report. Public Works Director Shawn Wood said his opinion is to work on the “fair” roads.
“If we only tackle the ‘lost’ roads, it will be tough,” Wood said.
Ingram said that was a difference of being able to use micro surface compared to the cost of full-depth reclamation.
“Looking at this, in my mind, there’s no other way to approach it any other way than a TSPLOST [Transportation Special Local Option Sales Tax],” the engineer said.
Commissioner Daylon Martin said the can had been kicked down the road a long time.
“We need to put the TSPLOST and package liquor sales on the ballot and use both to finance roads,” he said.
Martin also included the use of bonds in the equation.
“We can’t fix this overnight. We need to start with a solid plan,” he said.
Ingram said another issue is that roads in many subdivisions are terrible.
Weidner expressed concerns about new laws that allow additional weight for log trucks and the effect that will have on county roads.
Commissioner Wendy Vaughn noted that the report did not include unpaved roads. Wood said those roads were another story.
Rizner said the road report is very large, and he is working on how to share all the information with board members.
Weidner agreed that one of the challenges was finding a way to pay for the repair of the roads. He said he liked the ideas of a TSPLOST and the package liquor sales.
Wood emphasized the need to keep the roads in better condition so they do not deteriorate. He said that is a more cost-effective plan.
Ingram pointed out that the roads in the critical or lost category only make up 15 percent or approximately 50 miles of county roads.
The chairman asked for the TSPLOST referendum to be placed on the next meeting agenda.
Rizner said the referendum could be placed on the ballot in March, and the next opportunity would not be until November.
Kitchens said it would be important to educate the public about the need to improve the roads and the road report was a good start.
The work session was adjourned.
Business meeting
Weidner started the meeting on a positive note with the recognition of two Building Maintenance employees – John Simmons and Justin Tyler – for their hard work on the Board of Commissioners float for the Christmas Parade.
“Thank you both for going above and beyond,” the chairman said.
The first item on the agenda was a zoning request for an accessory dwelling unit on Carl Williams Sr. Road. There was no opposition to the request, which was made to allow for the care of parents of the petitioners.
Commissioner John Wood made the motion to grant the request, and it was approved unanimously.
Under board appointments, Martin made a motion to appoint Joy Carr to the Central Georgia Joint Development Authority Board. Carr will replace her father, Frank Duke.
The motion was approved unanimously.
Weidner expressed his gratitude to Duke for his numerous years of service to the county in that and many other capacities.
Martin also made the motion to appoint Weidner to the Middle Georgia Regional Commission Aging Advisory Council for a two-year term, which was approved unanimously.
New Business
Election Superintendent Marion Hatton presented the 2024 qualifying fees for this year’s upcoming elections, which is required by law. The positions that will be decided in 2024 include the County Commission Chairman and all four district representatives, coroner, board of education Districts 2 and 4, tax commissioner, clerk of superior court, judge of probate court and sheriff.
Martin made the motion to approve, and it passed with a unanimous vote.
Parks and Recreation Director Bert Rosenberger presented the commissioners with the bid award for the Liberty Park fencing project. Rosenberger said eight bids were received. He recommended awarding the bid to AA Action Fence in the amount of $24,850.
The director said the company was the lowest bidder that met the requirements for the project. Martin made the motion to accept the recommendation, and it was approved unanimously.
Rizner recommended using John Deere Financial to for the purchase of two John Deere backhoes from Dobbs Equipment.
Martin made the motion to follow the recommendation, and it was approved unanimously.
Commissioner Wood spoke about the need to place the county logo on new vehicles, and Rizner presented board members with new logo styles received from the Middle Georgia Regional Commission.
Rizner said the need for a rebranding for the county had been previously discussed, but it had taken longer for the samples than anticipated. He said Development Authority Executive Director Haley Watson was working on a proposal for the rebranding effort and suggested using the logo on the county letterhead while the process plays out.
Following a discussion about the logos, commissioners agreed to postpone a decision on the logo until the next meeting to gather more options.
During citizen comments, Debra Purnell talked to the commissioners about flooding problems with her home on Trotters Ridge Trail. She said when it rains, the water on both sides of the road drains to her property, and she asked the county to help.
With no other agenda items, the meeting was adjourned. The next meeting of the Board of Commissioners is scheduled at 6 p.m., Jan. 16.
