City of Fort Valley moves forward with bringing T-SPLOST back to the voters

FORT VALLEY, Ga. — The Mayor and City Council of Fort Valley have voted to move forward with bringing the Peach County T-SPLOST back to the ballot this fall. 

In a unanimous vote in favor, the Fort Valley city council agreed to enter into an intergovernmental agreement with Peach County, Byron, Perry, and Warner Robins to bring the Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (T-SPLOST) back to the voters in November. 

Council members Laronda Eason and Henry Howard wanted to assure voters that this is not an additional tax, but a renewal of the current tax. 

Earlier this year, Peach County voters rejected the renewal of the T-SPLOST with a vote of 54 to 46%. The votes cast were 1,548 against the T-SPLOST and 1,297 votes for the T-SPLOST.

The T-SPLOST is a major funding source of multiple road improvement projects across the county and its municipalities. Peach County’s proposed project list was extensive, covering major projects including a $4.6 million congestion realignment project along the Highway 247 Connector, a $1.9 million repair on Smyrna Church Road, and $1.5 million improvements for Boy Scout Road. 

Fort Valley Mayor Shakenna Reeves explained that the T-SPLOST provides the city with better ways to improve the quality of life for its citizens.

“When you talk about quality of life and wanting to be able to improve our community, it’s done by the citizens. So, the opportunity that Fort Valley citizens have the advantage of is being able to benefit from its neighbors. Think of a place like Warner Robins who just received a BJ’s, the sales taxes there is going to be a nice little penny,” Reeves said. “So, it’s a way for us to be able to receive money that we need to help poor, reconciled communities. With the T-SPLOST, you talk about the roads—alignments on your cars, bust tires, fatal accidents—if we don’t repair our roads then it’s going to impair the quality of life and the safety of the community as well.”