Oconee County reviews multiple road and facility projects and hears fiscal update at April meeting

Oconee County commissioners on Tuesday, April 2025, discussed a series of infrastructure and facility projects and heard a third-quarter fiscal update that showed county revenues close to budget projections.

The county’s public-works staff recommended awarding design services to Southeastern Engineering Inc. for a roundabout at State Route 53 and Cold Springs (Coal/Cold Springs appears variably in the record) and Klockfelter Road for a not-to-exceed price of $175,000 to be funded through T-SPLOST. Public works staff said the design process under the Georgia DOT encroachment permit will be quicker than federal-aid projects, but a firm timeline was not available. "I don't remember if it said the timeline in it. I'll find it out and get it to you," said the presenter (Jody) when asked how long the design would take.

Commissioners also heard recommendations and budget details on several other projects and procurements that staff said would be placed on the consent agenda for approval:

- Oconee Veterans Park irrigation: Staff recommended replacing the pump station wet well and well house and awarded the work to Shoemaker Irrigation with a project amount of $277,500. Facilities staff said the existing pump station has reached the end of its useful life.

- 441 Collection site scale house: Staff presented an RFP evaluation and stated a proposed project budget of $271,060 (construction price $246,060 plus a $25,000 contingency). During the presentation the vendor recommended was named as Bridal Contracting Incorporated; a subsequent line in the record names Raleigh Contracting Inc. as the recommended vendor. The county did not clarify the discrepancy during the meeting.

- Courthouse renovation (CMAR): Seven proposals were received for construction manager at risk services; the review committee recommended Kevin Price Construction as the top firm. The presentation cited initial general-conditions services of $242,577 and a 3.9% fee on the cost of construction; staff said they will work with the architect (Precision Planning) to develop a guaranteed maximum price for future approval.

- Civic Center repairs: County staff reported they received three bids and were awaiting clarifications from contractors; a recommendation to award is expected at the next meeting.

- Jail server and CCTV workstation replacement: County IT and corrections staff requested a budget amendment of $54,368 to replace an end-of-life server that stores jail CCTV footage; $50,000 is available in the capital assigned fund balance and the remainder would come from current-year revenues.

- Civic Center vehicle and senior center vans: Staff requested a revenue-neutral amendment to transfer an existing 2019 Ford Transit to facilities and to fund a Civic Center replacement vehicle not to exceed $20,000. The senior center requested a fund-balance purchase of two replacement vans; the presenter stated vehicle procurement would use a state contract and presented a cost figure that the record lists as "117,000 and $150 each" (the meeting did not clarify whether that number was intended to be a total or a per-unit price).

The board also discussed applying for FY 2025 Local Road Assistance (LRA) funds. Staff said the LRA formula amount for Oconee County is $927,866.12 and recommended using the funds toward two roundabout construction projects: Union Church Road at New High Shoals Road and Cullum Ferry Road at Aston Dale Road. Public works staff estimated the two projects together at $1,385,000 and said any remaining balance would come from T-SPLOST.

Finance director Melissa presented the county's third-quarter financials through March 31. She reported general-fund revenues of about $36.9 million (roughly 86% of the amended budget) and third-quarter expenditures near $29 million (about 64% of budget). Melissa noted real property taxes were approximately 99.3% collected and that local-option sales tax (LOST/SPLOST/TSPLAST) receipts were up compared with the prior year — various sales-tax funds were reported at roughly 79% to 124% of budget depending on the fund. For the water-resources enterprise fund, revenues were shown at about $14.7 million (close to 97% collected), with draws on a GEFA loan included in that figure.

Several project detail items and follow-up points were raised during questioning: a commissioner asked staff to provide a timeline for the roundabout design before the next meeting; public works said it had ordered material to replace a problematic sewer segment in the Tanglebrook area and had identified a roughly 100-yard segment for replacement; staff said some project expenses are recorded as transfers that typically occur at year end and that capital projects usually remain in process across fiscal years.

No individual roll-call votes on the project awards or budget amendments are recorded in the transcript excerpt; multiple presenters stated items were "up for consent agenda." The meeting moved to an executive session to discuss land acquisition and personnel after the public portion of the agenda.

Motion and procedural notes recorded in the transcript include a voice vote to approve the agenda at the start of the meeting (voice "Aye" recorded) and a motion to adjourn to executive session later in the record.

The board scheduled a town-hall meeting for May 13 at 6 p.m. and announced that the Jimmy Daniel recycling center will close as part of interchange work, with a last day of service in July (month stated; exact date not specified).