Resident presents Commissioners with traffic concerns

During the public comments portion of the June 2 meeting of the Houston County Board of Commissioners, Lawrence Wright came before the board expressing concerns of speeding and accidents on Pheasant Ridge Drive in Warner Robins. Wright, a resident of the street, referenced a fatal accident that took place on the road on May 27, in which he said a speeding vehicle could not negotiate a curve, causing it to hit a mailbox and trees, and ultimately, a retaining wall. Wright also referenced multiple previous happenings involving accidents that he has been aware of in his nine years of residency, and spoke of damage to his property as well as that of neighbors.

“We need for something to be done to control the speed on that street. It is dangerous to live there if you don’t know the truth,” Wright stressed. He explained that he has seen speed that he estimates at double the 25 mile per hour limit.

Wright asked the board to have county engineers check into solutions to the issue.

Chairman of the board, Tommy Stalnaker, expressed that the May 27 incident was very unfortunate, and further informed that speeding is not a problem unique to Pheasant Ridge Drive. He attested to personally seeing, in the last three months, accelerated vehicle speeds. Stalnaker also assured that the Houston County Sheriff’s Office is issuing citations at full force.

“It’s a problem throughout this nation; I don’t mean this county, but this nation, and it’s a sad situation,” Stalnaker expressed.

Stalnaker informed that the county is already looking into the issue, citing a possible traffic study on that street. Stalnaker further spoke of concerns for the use of speed humps and bumps, noting that at accelerated speeds, it could cause a vehicle to go airborne, and that particular device (speed bumps) may not always be the answer.

Commissioner Jay Walker voiced that this issue can be a life or death situation and that there is a need to find a way to have drivers slow down and have regard for the safety of others. Stalnaker asked Walker to meet with the sheriff’s office as well as Director of Operations Robbie Dunbar, and report back to the board as to what action can be taken in regard to this matter.

In other business, Stalnaker announced the members of the board would be receiving a copy of the balanced recommended budget that day for the 2021 fiscal year. Stalnaker said that though there is still uncertainty regarding revenues, he believed that the county was going to be OK, and there would be more certainty on the subject at the end of the calendar year, but that would be six months into the coming fiscal year.

Stalnaker stressed that the board has been very clear that it has not planned to increase taxes to raise additional revenues, and clarified that the millage rate would remain at its current figure, which Stalnaker said he believed was 9.935 on the general funds side.

“I can proudly say that this board has never considered raising taxes since I’ve been here,” Stalnaker said.

Stalnaker advised that there had been long hours spent on the matter of this operating budget, and said he was pleased with the county department heads on their budget preparations, noting that the vast majority had complied with commissioners’ requests.

Stalnkaer said the budget totaled $61,143,440 for the general fund, and that it was not much more than the current year’s budget.

Stalnaker informed that there will be a public hearing and budget presentation held on Monday June 8 at 4 p.m. at the county annex building in Warner Robins, with a vote regarding approval sought on June 16, at the second regular meeting of the board for the month of June.

Also occurring at the meeting was the unanimous approval of a bid concerning the Elko Waterline Extension Project. The bid was awarded to Low Tide Piping, LLC out of Wrightsville, Ga., at the cost of $462,703.58.

Stalnaker confirmed with Dunbar that the project would begin at Pyles Road and have a distance in linear feet of two to three miles.

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