Financial Update
- Millage Rate: There is a special called meeting for Monday, September 25, 2017 at 6:00 p.m. to set the millage rate. I expect Finance will expect a rollback from 9.853 mils to 9.828 mils.
Significant Projects and Activity
- Courthouse Renovation: The Architects have provided a preliminary schedule for the completion of bid documents and due dates for bids. For the Courthouse renovations and judicial building renovations and expansion, the bid documents will be ready by January 30, 2018 and bids due March 6, 2018.
- Animal Shelter: The Architects have stated that bid documents will be ready on October 31st and bids due December 5th.
- Comprehensive Plan: The Joint Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee will meet again on Friday, September 22, 2017 at 9:00 AM at the Calhoun Utilities Building, located at 700 W. Line Street in Calhoun. We will discuss needs & opportunities, community goals and vision statements for each jurisdiction
- New Health Department: Gordon County has received the deed from the State of Georgia conveying 1.26 acres of land behind the current Health Department. The County has acquired this land from the State for $10 with the intent to build the new Gordon County Health Department. The cost of construction will be paid from 2012 SPLOST proceeds that have been collected over the last several years.
- Tropical Storm Irma: The County sustained minimal damage from Tropical Irma. Several trees came down, some roads were temporarily closed due to high water and there were some temporary power outages. The official weather briefings were well attended by city and county officials and department representatives, the EOC was opened during the peak storm period and a temporary emergency shelter was opened at the Sonoraville Recreation Department.
- GSAR: At the request of GEMA, some of our area GSAR teams were deployed to Camden County. This is their report summary: “All in all we searched about 6000 houses. During this search we found 300 houses with structural damage and we found about 110 houses with flood damage. We were able to identify many residents that had many medical issues and were able to aid the citizens. We were blessed to have made many new friends within the community that have expressed their thanks over and over.” It is humbling to see the bravery of these dedicated professionals who choose to leave their families and personal safety to literally head for the eye of the hurricane to offer help to others. We thank them for their service!
- Red Bone Ridges Landfill: Santek reports: EDP conducted a routine inspection of the facility. We received a verbal score of 100% at the Redbone Ridges Landfill.
- Surplus Auction: Gordon County conducted an auction of surplus property last Saturday, September 16th and will net $33,482.00
- Settlement of Derailment costs: Several CSX rail cars derailed on March 10, 2017 near Chitwood Road in Resaca. CSX has agreed to reimburse the county for all expenses incurred for repairs to county property damaged by the derailment in the amount of $15,193.90.
- Mt. Olive Road: The Road Department is beginning to re-surface Mt. Olive Road. As you are aware, there is a section of the road that is included in the SPLOST referendum for widening. In consultation with the Public Works Director, I recommend that, for public safety concerns, the county should resurface the small section proposed to be redesigned and rebuilt with SPLOST proceeds even though it may be demolished in a few years after passage of the SPLOST. I have made this determination because the cost to resurface this small section is only about $2,000; the cost to skip this section would actually be higher than paving it; and, if we do not resurface this section, traffic would be exposed to unlevel pavement in an area where the road narrows between two bodies of water until the SPLOST dollars are collected and the work to widen the road is performed.
