The mess behind the courthouse annex in downtown Hinesville should start clearing up soon, engineer Trent Long told the Liberty County Commission Thursday.
“We’ve hit a few snags here and there, but not too bad considering we’re dealing with 50- to 60-year-old infrastructure,” Long said about putting a parking lot with green space in an area where a building stood that used to house a gas company and then part of the public-health department.
The engineer reported on several ongoing projects last week at the commission’s midmonth meeting.
The parking lot work includes improving drainage, which entails running new storm-sewer pipes north along Commerce Street to Memorial Drive. It is not part of a nearby project west of Main Street on Central Avenue, where the city is improving utilities at the site of a new campus for Armstrong Atlantic State University.
Long said most of the demolition is complete, as is most of the drain pipe. As power lines are rerun through the area, parts of Commerce Street will reopen. And, by this week, the area should start looking less like a construction zone.
“You’ll start to see what it’s going to look like this week,” Long said.
Other projects he reported on included repaving parts of six roads (Dave Williams, Holmestown, Westfield, Lake Rosalind, Island Highway and Quarterman). But he said he was not ready to recommend acceptance of the sole bid submitted for the contract to do the work.
“The prices are a good bit higher than what I was after,” Long said.
He said three contractors had requested information on the work, but that only one bid was submitted. It was for $109,007. Now, he plans to cut the specifications, such as how much existing pavement is milled down, to reduce the costs. He said he hopes to be able to recommend acceptance at a meeting next month.