Clanton resident urges Chilton County to prioritize dangerous stretch of local road

A Clanton resident, identified in the meeting only as Mr. Johnson, urged the Chilton County Commission to adopt a resolution to repair a badly deteriorated side road that serves about 37 households. "There's basically no road left there in about a quarter mile stretch," Johnson said, adding that vehicles "including a school bus" are driving down the middle of the lane to avoid the worst sections.

The resident told commissioners the road is about 1.2 miles long, with roughly one mile remaining unpaved; he asked for at least a shorter segment to be reconstructed if the full mile could not be done immediately. "So the whole road that's left that needs to be paved is just a little over a mile," he said, and asked that the commission vote on a resolution to fund repairs as soon as possible.

Engineering staff and commissioners said the county's engineer has visited the site but has not yet submitted a formal recommendation. Commissioner Ben (first name not specified at the meeting) said an engineer report and a resolution would be needed to place the work in next year's budget. "We'd have to get it put in the budget first, because everything's already budgeted to be paid this year," one commissioner said.

The commission indicated budget timing is the main constraint: county budgets are finalized in September, and any repair not deemed an immediate safety issue would need to be budgeted for the next fiscal year. Commissioners acknowledged the safety concern raised by Johnson and said they would prioritize an engineer assessment of the site. "We need the engineer to look at that and give us some kind of recommendation," a commissioner said.

The meeting record shows the resident presented photographic evidence and a petition signed by nearly all households on the road, and asked that the commission consider either a full reconstruction of the worst stretch or, if that is not immediately possible, at minimum a paving/smoothing of the worst half-mile. The engineer indicated maintenance crews had previously regraded shoulders and addressed some drainage but that several paved sections had failed.

For now, the record shows the item remains a request: staff indicated an engineering recommendation is required and the commission would need a resolution to place funding in next year's budget unless the engineer deems the condition a safety emergency that requires earlier action.

The commission did not take a formal vote on a repair at this meeting.

Looking ahead, Johnson asked that the commission place a resolution on the agenda for the next meeting; commissioners said they would obtain the engineer's recommendation and, if appropriate, include the work in next-year budgeting discussions.