Twiggs County Commission

The Twiggs County Commission voted Thursday to move forward with a water infrastructure project and road improvements. 

County attorney Kerry Howell said that the engineering plans and specifications for the water improvement projects in the Dry Branch area and near Exit 12 on Sgoda Road are complete. Commissioners voted unanimously to advertise for bids on the project. Commissioner Steve Birdsong was absent.

Howell said county engineers had previously applied for and received a federal grant for approximately $9.3 million, later increased to $10.3 million, to fund a water improvement project in the Dry Branch area and another near Exit 12 on Sgoda Road. Plans for the Dry Branch project have been finalized, and the Sgoda Road plans are almost complete.

“We’re trying to get at least that part of this grant underway," Howell said.

The commission also addressed road paving and patching projects, with Commissioner Keith Washington making a motion to advertise bids for pavement work on South Hampton, Strawberry Lane, and Dolly Lane. While discussing the bid process, Washington said, “I have got one bid in for one section of the road... that’s about a thousand-foot section. I can’t do it alone.”

“We do need to patch a bumpy road,” Chairman Ken Fowler said, supporting the need for repairs. In response to concerns about privacy and access to medical reports, Fire Chief Shaun Hart highlighted the need for clear policies to protect residents’ information. “If you have a call at your house, it's not right for your neighbor to walk in and request a report of what happened at your house,” Hart said.

Interim County Administrator/County Clerk Wilmarie Liz expressed support for the policy.“ I want to do this and I want to do it right. So I need a policy and guidelines that can back him up when somebody comes to him,” she said.

Following the regular agenda, the commission went into a closed session for over an hour to discuss real estate, personnel, and legal matters. No further information was disclosed about the discussions held during the executive session.

This article was originally written by Angel John as a part of Wesleyan's Local Democracy Lab. To learn more, contact ellington.wesleyancollege.edu.