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AMERICUS – At its monthly regular meeting on Tuesday, April 18, the Sumter County Board of Commissioners (BOC) voted unanimously to award Reeves Construction Company out of Albany the contract to perform the annual SPLOST/TSPLOST/LMIG (Local Maintenance and Improvement Grant) Paving project on certain roads in Sumter County.

According to the county’s Department of Public Works Director, Jim Littlefield, there were four companies bidding for the project, but Reeves Construction came in with the lowest bid at $2,539,213.00. The three bids came from Griffin Grading & Concrete, LLC from Cordele ($2,734,661.88), Robinson Paving Company out of Columbus ($2,613,792.91) and the Scruggs Company from Hahira, GA ($2,873,484.40). “The maximum difference is $334,000.00. That’s not bad for a project that came in over $2 million dollars,” Littlefield told the BOC. “Unfortunately, the project came in much higher than was anticipated and what we did cost estimates for.” Littlefield went on to say that since 2018, asphalt per ton has ranged in the $8 amounts and last year it was at $88 per ton and this year, it has gone up to $122 per ton. Littlefield added that out of curiosity, he took this year’s low bid from Reeves and compared it with last year’s bid from Robinson Paving company and discovered that there was a difference of anywhere between $267,000.00 to $500,000.00.

Littlefield cited inflation, along with the prices of crude oil and asphalt as the cause for the price difference. He also added that there are funds to pay for the project in the SPLOST, TSPLOST and LMIG funds. The roads that will be resurfaced and paved as part of the paving project are as follows:

 

2023 TSPLOST/SPLOST PAVING PROJECT

 

ROAD NAME                      DISTRICT   MILES             From                         To

• McMath Mill Road (part) 3,5              0.70          Wolf Creek Bridge   Point past James Hart Road
• Joe Buchanan Road            3                0.71            S. R. 30                       Old Highway 45
• Joe Buchanan Road (part) 3                0.50          Point off Old 45         Point off Old 45
• Roy Vaughn Road (part)    3                0.15            U. S. 280 West          Railroad Crossing
• Blacksmith Road                 4                2.70            Bagley Street              Lee County Line
• Styles-Robinson Road        4                3.10            U. S. 280 East            Lee County Line

 

TSPLOST/SPLOST Miles = 7.86

 

2023 LMIG PAVING PROJECT

 

ROAD NAME      DISTRICT MILES               FROM                              TO

• Middle River Road 1          4.60          Lane Store Road      District Line Road
• Middle River Road 2         0.63          District Line Road    Upper River Road
• Lane Subdivision Road 1 0.30           Middle River Road   Dead End

 

LMIG Miles = 5.53

Total Project Miles = 13.39

 

Board Chairman Mark

Waddell made a motion to approve the awarding of the paving project to Reeves Construction Company with the costs of the project to come out of SPLOST/TSPLOST/LMIG. Commissioner Jesse Smith made a motion for approval and Commissioner Clay Jones seconded the motion. The BC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.

In other news from the regular meeting, the BOC voted unanimously to approve the first amendment to the agreement between Sumter County and Gold Star EMS, LLC for emergency ambulance services. Commissioner Smith made a motion for approval and Commissioner Jones seconded the motion.

As far as Board Appointments were concerned, only two of the people serving on the Americus and Sumter County Hospital Authority and the Sumter County Library Board of Trustees wanted to serve a second term. Board Chairman Waddell made a motion for Deborah W. Jones to be reappointed to the Americus and Sumter County Hospital Authority. Her current term ends on June 30, 2023 and her next term is a two-year term that will end on June 30, 2025. Commissioner Smith made a motion for approval and Commissioner Jones seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.

The BOC also voted unanimously to reappoint Pamela Douglas to the Sumter County Library Board of Trustees. Her current term ends on June 30, 2023 and her next term will last three years and will end on June 30, 2026. Commissioner Smith made a motion for approval and Commissioner Jones seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.

The BOC also unanimously approved a down payment to NEOS Technologies in the amount of $145,175.74. Commissioner Smith made a motion for approval and Commissioner Jones seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.