Pulaski County commissioners press for stronger enforcement, contract changes after repeated road near-misses tied to solar crews

Pulaski County commissioners spent a large portion of their meeting debating enforcement and safety measures after repeated near-misses and recent crashes involving vehicles tied to large solar construction projects.

County project manager Tim Hollingsworth told the board that camera monitoring is motion-triggered and that staff have been reviewing thousands of images; the county has focused fines on larger vehicles such as semis and tractor-trailers. “We download all the video footage,” Hollingsworth said, and staff are working through photos “to verify the violations” and issue fines.

Commissioners and residents said the fines have not produced a clear reduction in unsafe driving. One commissioner said the county had “not seen a decrease” and that counts had either held steady or risen. Commissioners discussed raising fines — suggestions ranged from $2,000 to $5,000 per violation — and adding stronger contract terms, including a developer-funded escrow to cover monitoring, pay for additional officer hours and designate haul routes or holding yards.

Several commissioners emphasized that changing fine levels will require renegotiating the existing road‑use agreement with the developer. “In order to do that, you’re essentially renegotiating contracts,” a commissioner said, noting any change would need the developer’s agreement.

Public commenters pressed for a separate, county-controlled contract for traffic monitoring. One resident urged the county to “have another contract with Off Duty Solutions…partnered from the county and then asked…the solar developer to fund that,” arguing that the current off‑duty contract focuses on site security rather than traffic control and therefore does not meet resident needs.

The sheriff (unnamed in the record) and commissioners detailed recent incidents that have strained emergency responders, including a serious crash on State Road 39 earlier in the day involving two solar employees who were life‑flighted to hospitals. The sheriff and a commissioner urged more patrol hours and noted staffing limits; commissioners discussed using a private off‑duty services contractor or developer-funded patrols to increase coverage in constrained staffing situations.

What’s next: staff said the issue will be raised in an upcoming meeting with the developer and county attorney; commissioners asked staff to pursue contract modifications, consider higher fines and explore developer-funded enforcement options.