Coffee County discusses finishing Fountain Grove chip‑seal, culvert replacement and mower purchase

Coffee County members and staff reviewed plans to finish chip‑seal work on Fountain Grove Road, described several subdivision paving projects and said they will replace six culverts on Ogle Cemetery Road that have begun to block during storms.

The discussion matters because county staff said the current fiscal‑year paving funds are nearly exhausted, the culverts affect school‑bus access and aging mowing equipment is limiting roadside maintenance.

Benton, a staff member who provided the operations update, said, "We started out to do all of, Fountain Grove Road this year. That's about 8 miles, and I think we might have about 4 or 5 of it done now." He told the group the crew will stay on Fountain Grove Road until it is finished and is trying to use remaining FY funds before the new budget cycle begins on July 1.

Benton said the county runs chip‑seal operations when weather permits: "The rain messes the paving up really bad because we spray that oil to do our chip seal. And if it gets rained on, it turns brown and runs off the road. So we need sunny, warm weather for that to work the best." He added that some subdivision streets have been hot‑mixed or chip‑sealed after decades without work, citing Richland Hills, Wright Road and Country Air Lane as recent projects.

On drainage, Benton described Ogle Cemetery Road as having six culverts that "stop up every time it rains" and said the county plans to replace them with a boxed crossing. "It's getting where it's dangerous for the school bus to cross it," he said, and replacing the culverts will require lining up a crane and building a temporary access because the location is effectively a dead end when wet.

County members and staff also discussed equipment and mowing. Benton said the department may need to buy a new mower: "We got 1 or 2 that we can use for backups. And, we're probably gonna have to buy a new mower this year. I want to buy another 1 like we got the last time. Different brand, but same concept." He described one side mower having about 10,000 hours and nearing the end of service.

Several participants raised concerns about increased truck traffic wearing out narrow county roads. A meeting participant noted that 18‑wheelers and higher traffic volumes are stressing roads that were not built for that load; roads mentioned as particularly affected included Swan Road, Duncan Road, Schaefer and Shelton Town Road. Benton said crews will prioritize spots with the heaviest traffic and try to use remaining FY funds to address longer roads first so the money is spent.

The group also discussed a request to repair Pleasant Knoll Road from a grain dealer; Benton said crews will try to patch that road while working on Fountain Grove. Participants briefly reviewed past use of inmate crews for litter pickup; a staff participant said the county tried it previously but logistics and a past stolen pickup complicated that approach.

Procedural items: Bush, a meeting participant, moved to approve the agenda; Markham, a meeting participant, seconded and the agenda was approved. Markham moved to approve last month’s minutes, Bush seconded and the minutes were approved. Arliss, a meeting participant, moved to adjourn; Jeff, a meeting participant, seconded and the meeting was adjourned. The group noted the next meeting likely will be held July 2 at the Administrative Plaza.

Less urgent items discussed included additional subdivision development (Bashaw Creek was named), the need to widen shoulders in some places, and routine ditching and tile work at new construction sites. The discussion included repeated cautions that wet weather will delay chip‑seal work and that some subdivision streets will need larger repairs in future fiscal years.