Macon-Bibb County commissioners spent more time in executive session Tuesday evening than they did approving 13 items on the agenda, including allocating money for sidewalks, cemetery maintenance and other new contracts for services.
To protect the Bibb County Courthouse after hours, Macon-Bibb County Commissioners agreed to hire Sizemore security officers at a rate of $21/hour.
Although the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office provides security during business hours, this contract will cover nights, weekends and holidays in an effort to better secure the building at all times.
Commissioners also agreed to pay Dixie Lawn & Landscaping about $156,000 annually to take care of Riverside Cemetery, which was deeded over to the county in summer of 2023.
The transfer of property came with about $2 million from the cemetery that went into the general fund and will be used for maintenance on the more than 73 acres along the Ocmulgee River and adjacent to the county’s Rose Hill Cemetery, Mayor Lester Miller said.
Also on the agenda, Macon-Bibb County agreed to contract with the Surveying & Mapping company at a rate of up to $106 per hour to locate underground utilities before excavation work throughout the county. The money will come from the Facilities Maintenance budget.
Commissioners also earmarked nearly $398,000 in SPLOST funds to pay for new sidewalks that previously were approved for Barrington Hall.
In a public comment at the conclusion of the meeting, Roy Miller noted a delay in the sidewalk project on Pinehill Drive in east Macon.
He said neighbors were advised of the pending construction before it began in July, but after about a month crews left.
Although Roy Miller said the initial notice said workers would try to shorten the inconvenience by completing the project as quickly as possible, the interruption was not explained and “they left a mess.”
He indicated that the condition of the street gives the impression that east Macon is inferior to north Macon.
“It is as though we clean up the front room of Macon and leave the other rooms nasty. This is a bad impression,” said Miller, a local attorney not related to the mayor..
The project reportedly was paused to allow utility companies to work on their part of the project, but crews were diverted to storm damage priorities, Mayor Miller later told The Macon Newsroom.
Commissioners also agreed to a Payment in Lieu of Taxes, or PILOT agreement for the Macon Housing Authority’s renovation of Bobby Jones Villas, which is off Nisbet Drive in west Macon.
Because the property is tax-exempt, the authority agrees to pay 10% of the total rent for the 61 units for the next 32 years so that the county will provide municipal services.
The county also accepted a $3,200 Homeland Security Grant from the Georgia Emergency Management Agency to provide personal protective equipment for Macon-Bibb firefighters, and agreed to hire a new assistant solicitor for the Solicitor General’s office.
Commissioners accepted Habitat for Humanities’ $20,000 worth of improvements, including new fencing, benches, picnic table and signage at the playground in Lynmore Estates.
Citizens of Georgia Power are assisting in the project and a workday is planned this fall.
The county also accepted the donation of a memorial tree in Washington Park for pedestrian hit-and-run victim Jaxon Bilbrey who was found dead off of Emery Highway in September.
The Commission also approved a new alcohol license for Red Lobster on Riverside Drive.
At the top of the meeting, the county appointed former Historic Macon executive director Ethiel Garlington to serve on the Macon Housing Authority and Emergency Management Agency’s Robert McCord will represent active employees on the county’s pensions and retirement system Division A plan.
Newly sworn-in Commissioner Stanley Stewart will replace Elaine Lucas to represent the county on the Macon-Bibb County Board of Health. Stewart is filling the unexpired final term of Lucas, who was elected to the Macon Water Authority on Tuesday night.
In the final public comment of the night, Trudy Posner referred to the Zebulon Road school speed zone cameras as “speed traps” in front of Sonny Carter Elementary School.
Posner said vehicles turning from Plantation Centre Drive don’t see adequate signage before hitting the cameras.
Although commissioners spent about an hour in executive session at the end of the pre-commission meeting, no action was taken once they returned to open session.
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s pre-commission and regular commission meetings.
— Civic Journalism Senior Fellow Liz Jarvis Fabian covers Macon-Bibb County government entities for The Macon Newsroom and can be reached at [email protected] or 478-301-2976.
