At the Feb. 1, 2022, County Commission meeting, the Board of Commissioners had a tie 3-3 vote, meaning no action was taken and no activity may occur on a property on Bill Carter Road.
Property owner Joseph A. Bradham was petitioning to have it rezoned from agricultural residential (AR1) to general commercial (B 2) to operate a storage yard for two box trucks, one dually truck, two trailers, a car hauler and an RV.
In a previous meeting, Bradham said he’s been running a mobile mechanic business since 2018 and was previously storing his equipment at his other home in Hinesville. He was told the equipment needed to be moved, so he relocated it to his property on Bill Carter Road. He said he originally bought the property to build a home. He said he was told he could either build a home or have it zoned for business, but he could not have both on the same property. Bradham said he doesn’t do any work from that property; it is only where he stores his equipment.
The no-action vote means that Bradham needs to move his equipment and has to wait six months before being able to bring the matter before the board again.
Raymond Gross has been appointed as the new director of the Liberty County Recreation Department after former Director Jimmy Martin retired from the position.
The board was presented with the comprehensive Fire Department and EMS plan as they look to expand fire services and take over the operations of EMS from the Liberty Regional Medical Center. The plan, done by the Carl Vinson Institute, created new job descriptions and pay scales. The cost to run the services is expected to be around $215,322.12 a year. The board approved the comprehensive plan.
The commissioners approved rezoning 142.12 acres from agricultural to residential for the development of a new subdivision with 156 homes off Leroy Coffer Highway and Willie Dixon Road. During the public hearing, Darlene Jackson spoke against the rezoning, saying the traffic would be an issue and the speed limit would need to be reduced to reduce accidents. She said she wasn’t necessarily against the subdivision but that modifications to the highway need to be addressed. The board will look into the matter with the Department of Transportation.
The board also approved a rezoning request by David McDonald Enterprise to rezone 30.51 acres from agricultural to residential for homes to be built at Groover Road and Ray Road.
The board voted to reject all bids for improvements on Bill Carter Road due to a lack of funding for the project. Engineer Trent Long said they originally budgeted $558,000 for the project, and the lowest bid they received was $852,131. By rejecting the bids, the County will have some time to seek funding and put the project out to bid at a later date.
During their discussion regarding helping the City of Hinesville with funding for Southside Park off Airport Road, Commissioner Eddie Walden said he would like to see the current county park project be completed before helping the city build Phase 1. He also asked who would maintain the park. County Administrator Joey Brown said there was some talk about maintenance, but no plan has been finalized.
“Let’s let them to go ahead and start, and then if we can help them, we will help them,” Walden said.
Commissioner Connie Thrift said the board should remain obligated to assist since they had already told the city they would. The board committed to fund $350,000 to complete Phase 1.
Commissioners Marion Stevens and Maxie R. Jones IV mentioned that they have parks in their district that have yet to be completed. Jones added he wouldn’t be able to contribute as much to the park because he has less funds. Chairman Donald Lovette and Thrift are each contributing $100,000 to assist the city, and Commissioners Gary Gilliard and Walden are each contributing $75,000. The board approved a resolution to implement a state court technology surcharge to help bring in funds needed to update and purchase needed court technology.