New Waynesville VFD Substation at Atkinson Upper Elementary School‏

The new Waynesville Volunteer Fire 

Department Substation at the Atkinson

Upper Elementary School has been 

dried in. The WVFD team will be working

in coming weeks to complete construction, 

equip the building and start the certification 

process. 

Brantley Commissioners Meet with Hoboken Council Members on 2011 SPLOST

The Brantley County Commission met with the City Council of Hoboken on May 12^th in the new Hoboken Community Center in a called special session to talk about the proposed SPLOST extension in November.

The Commission has approved a SPLOST extension referendum for the November 2011 election time frame when the voters will have the opportunity to support the extension of the same 1 cent Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) for more road paving ($4.2 million), jail payments ($3 million) and recreation ($800,000) funding.  This is NOT a new tax.  This is an extension of the same one cent SPLOST that has allowed the County to pave Boots Harrison, Satilla Church, Dude Circle, Mt. Calvary, Waynesville, Buster Walker, Baker Creek Phase I, Wainright Loop, the courthouse parking lot, resurfacing of Oak Grove and more. A part of the process to prepare for the election includes meetings with the city councils to work out the details of their portion of the SPLOST. 

In SPLOST referendums of the past, the funding for roads has been shared with the cities based on their population in comparison to the population with the County.  The SPLOST funds that are transferred from the County to the cities have to be spent for road construction and maintenance items.  The city of Hoboken has historically received 7% and the city of Nahunta 13.5% of the funds collected toward the road portion of the SPLOST.  

In the meeting tonight, the County Commission and the City of Hoboken agreed to keep the percentage the same at 7% and to allocate those funds for road construction and maintenance in the City of Hoboken.  The City Council will prepare a priority list for road paving, resurfacing, striping and general buildup or repair of city streets.  A copy of this will be provided to the County. 

The two governments further agreed to bundle the road projects in the City of Hoboken with County road projects to allow for economies of scale to stretch the SPLOST dollars as far as possible.  When the County lets a bid for a paving project, which could include a project of ½ million dollars or more, they will also work through the list from Hoboken and add the city streets to the bid.  This will help drive the cost down for city projects.  Adding the city streets to large County projects will get the city a better price on the same job.  The more you buy the cheaper they get.  The Hoboken council will assign priorities, will have the opportunity to change those priorities and will have the opportunity to complete other repairs outside paving, resurfacing and striping.

The County attorney will work up the first draft of the Intergovernmental Relations agreement and provide it to the City of Hoboken Mayor, Clerk and Council for review.  Once the language is satisfactory to the City of Hoboken and the County Commission, each body will approve the language in their respective meetings.

This is a great example of how the City of Hoboken and the County are able to work together to make the best and most economical use of tax payer dollars.  This kind of positive image in government is exactly what Brantley County needs to continue to make the kind of progress that has been made over the last two years. 

Meetings with the City of Nahunta are being scheduled.         

Brantley County Commission May 2010 Regular Meeting

The Brantley County Commission. in its regular meeting at the courthouse on May 10, 2011 handled a wide variety of topics. 

In public participation, Billy Lee of the Brantley County Airport Authority reported on a hugely successful grand opening of the newly extended and lighted Brantley County Airport.  A large crowd was in attendance, along with over 15 aircraft.  The group enjoyed a sky diving presentation and delicious refreshments provided by the Waynesville Volunteer Fire Department.  Mr. Lee also asked to be placed on the agenda so that he could discuss some airport business with the Commission.

Chief Altman of the Nahunta Volunteer Fire Department approached the Commission about the old EMS building being used for training and meetings of the Volunteer Fireman’s Association.

James Segui approached the Board to complain about his neighbor’s vicious dogs. They have jumped the fence and gave chase to his wife and him in their own back yard.  Repeated attempts to work with the neighbor have failed and he asked the Commission to consider a leash law and changes to the vicious dog ordinance.  He and others would like to see the vicious dog ordinance modified so that the ordinance would come into play “prior” to someone getting bitten or mauled by a dog.      

At the start of the meeting, the following items were approved as outlined on the consent agenda. 

·         Approve the re-appointment of Lawanda Flowers to Department Family & Children Services Board

·         Approve the re-appointment of Winell Bowen, Jeff Thomas, Ellen Lane, Sissy Smith Baxley and Frank Bullard, III, to the Library Board

·         Approve the re-appointment of Jimmy Woodard and Dan Moody to the Brantley County Forestry Commission Board

·         Approve the re-appointment of Leola Bunkley to the Satilla Community Service Board

·         Approve and enter into the Maintenance in Lieu Agreement with the State of Georgia, DHR-Dept. Family & Children Services Board

·         Approve the re-modeling of the previous Atkinson Volunteer Fire Dept., Station on Highway 82 East to house a unit of the EMS, which will be moved from Waynesville to Atkinson with budgeted funds.

·         Approve a joint project with Danny Bennett to place milled asphalt on Williams Road, with the County paying one-half the cost and Mr. Bennett paying one-half the cost, estimated to be around $4,250.00 each and to pay for this expenditure from the SPLOST road account

·         Approve the County entering a lease-purchase agreement to purchase two 1992 fire engines for the Nahunta VFD, Inc., at a purchase price of $35,000 each, along with $10,000 to purchase large diameter fire supply hose and attack lines for a truck they currently have no hose for;  loan amount will  be $80,000, to be financed over a 5-6 year period

On the regular agenda, the County approved a 10-year intergovernmental agreement with the Development Authority that established 0.286 mills to be dedicated for funding of the Industrial Development Authority.  This isn’t an increase and only locks in the current budgeted amount of about $75,000 annually for the Development Authority.  The Commission is dedicated to expanding Industry in Brantley County, bringing jobs, and an Industrial Tax base to help shift the tax burden from the residential tax payer.

The Commission has decided to not pursue the Bond approach and “pulling forward” funding from the SPLOST extension if the voters approve it in November 2011.  Then the Commission approved a new SPLOST motion for a total of $8 million dollars with $4.2 million dedicated to road construction, $3 million dedicated to making jail payments of over $648,000 each year (representing 2.3 mills of taxes) and $800,000 for Recreation.

The Commission discussed allowing the Firefighter’s Association to use the old EMS building in Nahunta for training and meetings.  The County Manager explained that there are Constitutional Officers and County Departments using a good portion of that building for storage.  The question of exactly how much of the building is available was asked.  The County Manager will assess what is available and the Chairman will meet with members from the Firefighter’s Association to discuss how much room is needed and the structure of an agreement.

The Commission discussed the vicious dog ordinance.  Commissioners agreed that it would be good to modify the vicious dog ordinance so that vicious dogs could be dealt with PRIOR to someone getting hurt if it can be done legally.  A leash law for the entire County, animal control officers and facilities to manage stray dogs and cats is outside of the County’s financial capabilities.  It was reported that some citizens are working to form an animal adoption group to help find homes for stray animals.  The County attorney was asked to research what other counties do to manage the problem with vicious dogs prior to someone getting bitten or mauled.  He will report back in the June Work Session.

Airport Authority members Billy Lee and Mary Gibson asked the Commission to adopt the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA’s) airport flight path restrictions as a County ordinance so that property within the flight path of the airport would be subject to height restrictions to accommodate instrument landings in low visibility conditions.  It is in these times that pilots are landing on the newly lighted runway with little or no ability to see the obstructions that could cause a crash.  For this reason the FAA establishes restrictions on the height of structures within the flight path.  The County attorney was asked to work with the Clerk and the Airport Authority to define an ordinance and or resolution that could be considered at the June meeting.

The County went into an executive session for personnel and land acquisition.  After the executive session, the Commission came out and took no action on the personnel matter.  The Commission did approve a motion allowing the Chairman to sign a purchase contract with GaDOT.        

Commission May 2011 Work Session

The Commission started out the May 2011 Work Session meeting with public participation.  They heard a complaint from a Waynesville resident about a vicious dog in their neighborhood.  Three neighbors came to the meeting to express their desire for a leash law or some ordinance that eliminates stray dogs and cats in Brantley County and places responsibility on residents to fence their yards.

The Commission discussed the appointments to several boards.  The following items were placed on the consent agenda for the regular meeting:

·         Reappoint Mrs. Lawanda Flowers to the Department of Family & Children Services Board

·         Reappoint Mrs. Winell Bowen, Jeff Thomas, Ellen Lane, Sissy Smith Baxley & Frank Bullard III to the Library Board

·         Reappoint Jimmy Woodard and Dan Moody to the Forestry Commission Board

·         Reappoint Mrs. Leola Bunkley to the Satilla Community Services Board

The Commission placed an appointment to the Planning Commission Board on the Regular agenda so that a person who’d previously discussed being on that board could be contacted.

The Commission discussed an intergovernmental relations agreement with the Development Authority.  The Commission’s desire is to provide dedicated funding for economic development.  The only longterm solution to relief the tax burden on the residential tax payer is to grow an industrial tax base in Brantley County.  During the discussions, it was made clear that this was not about “increasing” the funding for the development authority.  The goal is to establish the current level of funding over a 10 year period that gives the Development Authority some leverage to attract industry and jobs to Brantley County.  The budget for the DA in 2011 was $78,000.  This represents 0.286 mills, based on last year’s digest.  The basis for the agreement would allow for 0.286 mills to be dedicated to the DA for a period of 10 years in exchange for the services.  This is not an increase in millage or in the budget, but this will allow the DA’s budget to grow as the digest grows.  This item was placed on the Regular Agenda.

The Department of Family and Children Services Annual Maintenance in Lieu Agreement was placed on the consent agenda.  This is the annual support contract for the amount of $208,680.  

The County Manager updated the team on the status of the Buster Walker, Waynesville and Mt. Calvary Road Paving Projects that are currently under way.  The right of way, ditch and dirt work is complete Waynesville, as well as the base clay layer.  A hold up with the Department of Transportation testing facility has cost the project about 3 to 4 weeks, but the contractor is working to get back on track.  The soil cement base layer should be starting soon.  The Buster Walker Road is also shaping up nicely.  Both of these projects are slated to be completed in early summer.  The Mt. Calvary Road project is well under way, with completion also expected in early summer.  He reported that there is over $900,000 in the Road SPLOST account to complete these projects with some payments already made and state reimbursements due.   

The courthouse parking lot was discussed.  The County Manager explained that the contract had been struggling to get appropriate compaction rates with the soil, as it was too wet.  After 10 days of drying, the recent rains caused more issues.  The Commission instructed the County Manager to work with the engineering group and the contractor to come up with a solution that brings the project to closure without sacrificing the construction criteria.  He explained that they have a solution and will begin work on it on Wednesday.  

The Commission discussed the SPLOST extension and bond referendum that the Commission voted last month to place on the ballot in November 2011.  The team has reviewed all the information that was provided by the bond counsel and felt that there wasn’t sufficient savings to move forward with the bond referendum for the next road projects.  And the “pre-payment” of the jail produced no sizeable benefit based on the way the lease was defined on that facility.

The County Clerk will review the motion that was made on the SPLOST from the last meeting and if that motion needs to be redone to remove language about the bond, that will be discussed in the regular meeting.  The meeting with the city of Hoboken on the next SPLOST has been scheduled.

The County Manager updated the Commission on the recreation projects next.  The Satilla Fields Project Phase I is coming to a close.  One safety issue was discussed.  The netting for the concession and bleacher areas needs to be installed.  The Commission had been working through channels to get the netting from surplus military items to save money, but those resources have fallen silent.  The original netting quoted with the fencing was $14,000.  The County Manger has found a different source that can provide a similar product for only $8,000.  The Commission placed an item on the regular agenda to discuss this and asked the County manager to bring alternatives to the regular meeting next week. 

The boat ramp was also disused.  A copy of the plans was reviewed by the Commission.  The permits for the construction have all been filed and should be approved in July so that construction can start.  The project will need to be completed in October to meet the grant deadlines.  

The County financial reports were reviewed.  The County general fund has approximately $2.9 million dollars in the account as of May 3^rd.  With anticipated revenues and spending levels consistent with the 2011 budgeted amounts, the County will be able to get through the year without borrowing funds to operate.  

The Commission discussed moving EMS from Waynesville to Atkinson.  Last year when the decision was made to move the distributed EMS stations to more centrally located positions, the Calvary Station was moved to Hoboken and the Waynesville Station was slated to be moved to Atkinson.  Some improvements need to be completed to the Atkinson Station to allow for 24x7 living accommodations.  The Commission placed an item on the consent agenda to allow the County manager to use budgeted funds to complete this process in the same manner that the Main Nahunta EMS and Hoboken EMS stations were completed.  This proved to be an economical yet reliable solution.

The County Manager presented the Commission with another offer where a company or individual was willing to split the cost of paving the road to their location.  Mr. Danny Bennett in the Central Avenue area has offered to share in the $8500 that it would cost to pave the road in front of his duplex properties.  The Commission placed an item on the consent agenda to split the costs of paving this portion of road with the property owner. 

The Nahunta Volunteer Fire Department brought a proposal to the commission to replace one truck that has been removed from service and to purchase another truck with funds they have budgeted for 2011.  One truck is a 1500 gpm pumper and the other is a 1250 gpm pumper.  The price is $35,000, with a request to increase the hose and connectors on one of the trucks to the larger size for $10,000.  With fire tax monies available for the unincorporated and incorporated areas, the VFD will be able to pay for the trucks over two years.  The Commission placed this item on the consent agenda.  

Next, the Commission discussed the “split billing” concept for property taxes.  The Commission discussed this last year but the software company was in the middle of making large scale system-wide changes to support new laws and was not in a position to make those changes or even quote the expense to provide that functionality.  The Commission has asked the Tax Commissioner to go back to Manitron and place a formal request for the functionality.  The goal here is to split the tax bill between the County portion and the Board of Education (BOE) portion and separate those payments over 4 to 6 months to spread the payment over multiple revenue cycles for the tax payer. 

Nahunta VFD

The Nahunta Volunteer Fire Department brought a proposal to the Commission to replace one truck that has been removed from service and to purchase another truck with funds they have budgeted for 2011.  One truck is a 1500 gpm pumper and the other is a 1250 gpm pumper.  The price is $35,000, with a request to increase the hose and connectors on one of the trucks to the larger size for $10,000.  With fire tax monies available for the unincorporated and incorporated areas, the VFD will be able to pay for the trucks over two years.  The Commission placed this item on the consent agenda. 

Hortense VFD Substation Construction

Mike Carver of the Hortense VFD reported these photos of the Hortense VFD Substation construction on 110 North, just south of the highway 32 intersection.  The foundation is complete and the steel is going up now.  The Commission, in conjunction with the VFDs across the County, put together a program last year that allowed for substations to be built in key areas linking main stations to substations within 5 miles.  These also will link each department so that they have a station within 5 miles of their neighboring department. This will better distribute fire equipment about the population in Brantley County and, in time, reduce the ISO ratings across the County as these stations come online, are inspected and receive the proper ISO certifications.  This lowered ISO rating is already saving homeowners around the County as much as 20% to 30% on their homeowners insurance.

Congratulations to the Hortense VFD for their progress in their area.  Stay tuned for more updates from Hoboken, Waynesville and Nahunta as other substations come online.