Toccoa commissioners conditionally approve geotechnical testing at Ritz Theatre expansion

Mayor Terry Carter said at the Sept. 22 City Commission work session that the city should pay for geotechnical boring at the Ritz Theatre expansion site so designers can “know the conditions of any soil” and the water table before signing a construction contract. The commission gave a conditional go-ahead to fund the test only after staff secured confirmation that an ARC grant extension is approved.

The commission heard that the project’s original geotechnical estimate was $12,500 and that the architect obtained a lower bid of $9,900. The project architect’s firm offered to contribute $5,000 toward that bid, which, as presented at the meeting, would leave the city responsible for $4,900 to proceed with the work now. City staff said conducting the test now would reduce the risk of unexpected costs later in construction.

Jacob Pinson and Abby Watson of J. Davis Construction and a representative identified as Joe Gardner described the technical steps the civil engineer would take if the boring finds a high water table or spring. Pinson said an engineer “would be able to design a solution to address that,” and that the test would eliminate the project’s largest remaining uncertainty.

Vice Mayor Evan Hellenga and other commissioners raised site concerns and scope questions. Hellenga noted that “we have had some sink holes not far from this location” and urged continued efforts to reduce building size to limit added infrastructure needs. Commissioner Gail Fry asked why geothermal or water-table testing — which she said is a requirement — was not completed earlier in the design process.

Architectural and city staff described work already done to incorporate city comments, including revisions related to the automatic fire-protection system and utility reroutes. Mr. Gardner said comments from the city and other authorities required plan changes; the civil engineer estimated about $2,500 to revise plans and Mr. Pinson estimated re-bidding the revised scope would take less than a week in most cases.

City Manager Fredda O. Wheeler and staff have requested an extension from the Appalachia Regional Commission (ARC) on the grant deadline; Connie Tabor told commissioners the extension request had been made and “it should be anytime,” but no official extension was on file at the time of the meeting. Mayor Carter said the bond issuer has been consulted and that bonding work would proceed once a contract is signed.

Utilities Director Harry Scott told commissioners that prior work traced water in the area back under the Ritz and that the boring would help clarify what the city owns and how to address any subsurface water. Commissioners said they would approve the geotechnical test only if the ARC extension is granted and the final project price returned to the commission does not exceed previously authorized limits.

Next steps: staff will await official notice from ARC, complete the geotechnical test if the extension is approved, and update the construction estimate and any required plan revisions for a future commission action. The commission adjourned at 5:00 p.m.