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Richmond Hill resident tells Bryan County commissioners drainage work left her property worse off
Summary
Melissa Johnson told the Bryan County Board of Commissioners she has pursued county action for more than a year to address standing water and drainage at 63 Sweetwater Court; she said recent county grading made conditions worse and asked the county to follow up on ownership and corrective work.
Melissa Johnson of 63 Sweetwater Court in Richmond Hill told the Bryan County Board of Commissioners on April 8 that a drainage problem at the side of her property has persisted for more than a year and that recent county work made the situation worse.
"I have been at this for well over a year, trying to get the county's help to deal with the drainage and the water issues," Johnson said during the public-comment period. "What ended up happening is lines here and there, and my situation is worse now than when they came out. Now I have two little ponds going down the side of my property. The water's not flowing."
Johnson described deep, standing water with algae, insects and mosquitoes and said the water reaches about calf depth at the deepest end. She said a small trench the county dug was perpendicular to her property and diverted neighbor water onto her lot; she also said a pipe under the gravel portion of Sweet Hill Road appears to be higher than the standing water, preventing flow.
A speaker identified in the meeting as a public-works participant or a commissioner noted they had visited the site with county public works staff and that some work had been done. "When we went over there, there was discussion about the pipe that actually went underneath the gravel road. Maybe the elevation on it was...they said it's higher," the speaker said.
County representatives said they would follow up and determine road ownership and potential next steps. Johnson told the board she has photographs documenting the standing water and asked for continued county attention; staff said field work may be limited while ground conditions remain wet and that equipment access may require drier conditions.
What was said and what happens next
- Public comment: Melissa Johnson urged county action after a year of reported drainage problems and said recent grading increased standing water on her property.
- County response: A county representative said they previously visited the site with public works and would revisit; staff noted access and equipment deployment may depend on drier conditions and said they would look into who owns the gravel portion of the road.
- Direction: Commissioners/ staff committed to follow up and to determine ownership of the section of Sweet Hill Road that may affect drainage responsibility; no formal county action or vote was taken on the item at the April 8 meeting.
