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The Regional Roundtable held its meeting at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, August 8, 2011 at the Turin Community Center in Turin, Georgia.
WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION
Chairman Raines called the meeting to order and welcomed all attendees. He then asked Mr. Harvey Norris to give the invocation. After the invocation, Chairman Raines advised the members that the agenda needed to be changed in order to accommodate a quick meeting of the Executive Committee. He then asked the Executive Committee chairman, Mr. Richard Wolfe, to explain the reason why the committee needs to meet. Chairman Wolfe advised the Roundtable that the Executive Committee last met on Thursday, August 4, and at that time they had agreed on a project list to present to the Roundtable. It was late on Friday (August 5th) afternoon that he was informed that GDOT had deleted a Heard County project from the list but the project had remained on our worksheets in error. Chairman Wolfe was not able to speak with Ms. June Jackson about this issue and had requested that the Committee be able to address this situation. He stated that the vote that was taken last Thursday was an invalid one and he wanted to resolve this issue as soon as possible. Chairman Raines asked if any Roundtable member had an issue with allowing the Executive Committee to meet for thirty (30) minutes. No one objected to this; Chairman Raines excused the Executive Committee members in order for them to meet and to address the matter.
Regional Roundtable Members in Attendance
Butts County: Mr. Roger McDaniel, Chairman, Butts County
Mr. Harvey Norris, Mayor, City of Flovilla
Carroll County: Mr. Bill Chappell, Chairman, Carroll County
Coweta County: Mr. Rodney Brooks, Chairman, Coweta County
Heard County: Ms. June Jackson, Chairperson, Heard County
Mr. Denny Rogers, Mayor, Town of Ephesus
Lamar County: Mr. Jay Matthews, Chairman, Lamar County
Mr. Peter Banks, Mayor, City of Barnesville
Meriwether County: Ms. Nancy Jones, Chairperson, Meriwether County
Mr. Ron Garrett, Mayor, City of Woodbury
Pike County: Mr. Doug Mangham, Chairman, Pike County
Mr. Mike Beres, Mayor, City of Zebulon
Spalding County: Mr. Eddie Freeman, Chairman, Spalding County
Ms. Joanne Todd, Mayor, City of Griffin
Troup County: Mr. Richard Wolfe, Chairman, Troup County
Mr. Jeff Lukken, Mayor, City of LaGrange
Upson County: Mr. Maurice Raines, Chairman, Upson County
Mr. Hays Arnold, Mayor, City of Thomaston
Other attendees:
Mr. Kenny Roberts, City of Barnesville
Mr. Jason Shirey, City of Barnesville
Mr. Tavores Edwards, Coweta County
Mr. Bill Sawyer, Pike County
Mr. Tod Tentler, Troup County
Mr. James Emery, Troup County
Mr. Todd Long, Georgia Department of Transportation
Mr. Bill Rountree, Georgia Department of Transportation
Ms. Cindy Van Dyke, Georgia Department of Transportation
Mr. Stephen Daniel, Thomaston
Mr. Winston Skinner, Newnan Times-Herald
Three Rivers Regional Commission staff present:
Mr. Lanier Boatwright, Executive Director
Mr. Robert Hiett, Governmental Services Director
Mr. Anthony Dukes, Transportation Planner
Ms. Jan Edens, Secretary
MEETING CALLED TO ORDER
Chairman Raines called the meeting back to order since the Executive Committee members had returned from their meeting. Chairman Raines asked Mr. Todd Long if he would like to address the Roundtable. Mr. Long gave a summary of how the various Roundtables (surrounding our area) were doing. Chairman Raines thanked Mr. Long for attending; he also expressed his gratitude to the Roundtable members for working together and that he appreciated the support during the process.
REVIEW OF JULY 21, 2011 MEETING MINUTES
Chairman Raines asked the members if there were any corrections or amendments that needed to be made regarding the July 21, 2011 meeting minutes. When nothing was mentioned, Chairman Raines stated that he would entertain a motion to adopt the July 21st meeting minutes. Mr. Hays Arnold made the motion to adopt the minutes; Mr. Mike Beres seconded the motion and it was carried unanimously.
CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
Chairman Raines reminded the members that Butts, Coweta, Lamar, Meriwether and Upson counties have submitted the GPS data that was mentioned during the last Roundtable meeting; he asked the other counties to submit their data by no later than August 26th. This data is needed to produce maps for the upcoming public meetings.
Since the Roundtable is moving into the process in which the last constrained list will be finalized and approved by them and submitted to the state, Chairman Raines feels that it is important to have a small “steering” committee put in place. This committee would be comprised of Chairman Raines, Mr. Richard Wolfe and two (2) to three (3) other members. The idea is that the “steering” committee would provide guidance to the Three Rivers RC (TRRC) staff with the finalized list and any other issues that may arise and to inform the Roundtable of such instances. Several members had questions concerning what power the “steering” committee would have; it was reiterated that this particular committee would have no power to make any changes and it must report back to the Roundtable. Mr. Hays Arnold made the motion that a “steering” committee be formed and that it be comprised of the chairman of the Roundtable, the chairman of the Executive Committee and additional members that the Roundtable chooses to elect. It was at this point that Chairman Raines asked if the Roundtable wanted to leave the Executive Committee in place; Mr. Arnold withdrew his motion and more discussion followed. Chairman Raines stated that “the ‘steering’ committee if it pleases the Roundtable, to include the Executive Committee and the chairman, for finalization of the process.” He then asked if any member had any opposition to the idea; nothing was mentioned. Chairman Raines then stated that he entertained a motion to adopt the idea regarding the “steering” committee. Mr. Jeff Lukken made the before referenced motion; it was seconded by Mr. Arnold and carried unanimously.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Chairman Raines opened the floor for public comments; when nothing was mentioned, he closed this portion of the agenda.
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE REPORT – Chairman Ricky Wolfe, Troup County
Chairman Raines took the opportunity to “commend Chairman Wolfe, Chairman Jackson, Chairman Brooks, Mayor Todd and Mayor Arnold for all that you have done. It’s not been easy…I want to let you know, on behalf of this Roundtable, we appreciate the time, the effort, the frustration, everything that you’ve done to get us to this point. Just know that we couldn’t have been where we are right now, without what you’ve done. As the chair of this Roundtable, I really appreciate what you’ve done.” He then asked Chairman Wolfe to proceed with his report.
Chairman Wolfe advised the members that he couldn’t provide copies of the project listings since an adjustment was made a short time ago and that we did not have access to the Turin office. The Heard County issue has been resolved; project TR129 (Pea Ridge Road worth $6 million) project has been added back to the listing; he also relayed that Ms. June Jackson made a motion that the $2.6 million (the differential between the old Heard County project versus the new Heard County project) be allocated to the S.R. 36 project. Chairman Wolfe thanked Ms. Jackson for “giving up that $2.6 million to the pot.”
Chairman Wolfe advised the members that $10 million was budgeted for the fee schedule; all funds have been allocated; and that the “pot” of funds totals $841 million over a ten (10) year period. He also advised the members that funding was never looked at on a per capita basis. The statistics are as follows:
| County | % of funds receiving | Population % |
| Butts | 5.6 | 4.8 |
| Carroll | 21.4 | 22.6 |
| Coweta | 25.1 | 26.0 |
| Heard | 5.1 | 2.4 |
| Lamar | 4.1 | 3.7 |
| Meriwether | 5.1 | 4.5 |
| Pike | 1.9 | 3.6 |
| Spalding | 11.6 | 13.1 |
| Troup | 14.4 | 13.7 |
| Upson | 6.56 | 5.5 |
The project list that was approved on Thursday is the same except for the Heard County change and Chairman Wolfe advised the members that the Executive Committee was passing this information to the Roundtable for consideration. Chairman Raines stated that everyone was getting more per capita than first believed. He reminded everyone that this is not the final list, but only a draft list. Chairman Raines then asked for comments from the Roundtable to the Executive Committee. Some members were not comfortable voting on the project list without seeing the hardcopy of the document; they were reassured that everyone will get a copy of this information before the end of the business day.
Several members had questions concerning how the funds will be distributed, how often, who will distribute, etc. Mr. Long answered that “we’re hoping that it will work just like a regular SPLOST. Money will come in from the Department of Revenue, then it goes to the Georgia State Finance & Investment Commission (GSFIC) …they’re holders of the money.” As far as the discretionary funds, “on a monthly basis, it will be sent back to the cities and counties in the form of revenue. Then you as a city council member, county commissioner, you all will decide how that money is spent as long as it is spent on transportation purposes as written in the bill. Now the money on the projects that you vote for, that’s a little bit different. Same thing…Department of Revenue, collecting all the tax, it goes to GSFIC…as funding is needed for projects or for a phase of the projects, then GSFIC distributes the money.” Another member asked about interest on the money. Mr. Long explained “that if you do things right and kind of have things ready to go ahead of time, there’s not going to be a whole lot of interest. Theoretically, as the money comes in, you’re going to be trying to use it…you’ll be trying to spend it out the door.” He did state that “the bill is silent” with regard to interest.
It was also noted that by October 15th, the Roundtable will deliver the list of projects and dates for the projects and that GDOT will assist with this.
Mr. Long reiterated that once the $841 million limit is reached or the ten (10) year time frame is reached, the tax stops.
STAFF REPORT
Mr. Robert Hiett presented this portion of the agenda.
a. Updated RTR Timeline – Beyond August 15th - Mr. Hiett advised the members that the draft list is the one that was being worked on today. TRRC staff is in the process of getting ready for the public hearings that should take place after Labor Day. He also mentioned that the staff would work with the Steering Committee and GDOT on any final project cost changes that may need to be done. The talk of cost changes prompted some talk about Spalding County’s commuter rail project. Per Mr. Long, the commuter rail is in doubt and a lot of decisions to still be made. He advised the members to keep other projects in mind.
i. Cost Revisions & Project Changes – Discussions centered around the commuter rail project and the allocation that Spalding County must have.
b. Public Hearings – September 2011-The Roundtable decided to have two (2) public hearings to begin with and the possibility of having a public meeting in each county. The first two (2) meetings will be in Spalding County and in Upson County. It was decided that it would be helpful to have as many Roundtable members attend as possible and that all counties are also invited. Mr. Long advised that every meeting should be identical with maps, project lists, etc.
OTHER BUSINESS
Roundtable Comment – All Proposed Funding Methodologies
Chairman Raines asked if there were any questions about the funding methodology. It was decided that there was no need to take a vote on the unconstrained list. It was noted that this was a draft list at this time, but that a vote should not take place before October 15th. It was also noted that the Executive Committee’s work today was unanimous, 5-0.
The Roundtable adjourned for ten (10) minutes in order for the project lists to be copied and distributed to the members.
Chairman Raines advised the members that the Steering Committee will meet and the two (2) public meetings (in Spalding and Upson) will be scheduled very soon.
Mr. Arnold thanked the members of the Executive Committee for their work. “It was very cordial experience. There has not been any friction…there were concerns and issues that needed to be compromised and that was all effectively done.”
Chairman Raines again expressed his thanks to the Executive Committee for their hard work. “It’s refreshing to know that you all were able to come together and do what needed to be done to move us forward.”
NEXT MEETING DATE
The Roundtable will meet again on Thursday, September 29, 2011 at 9:00 a.m.; the meeting will be held at the Turin Community Center in Turin, Georgia.
ADJOURN
Chairman Raines adjourned the meeting after receiving a motion from Mr. Roger McDaniel.
Click here to find out more information from the Three Rivers website.
Click here for a quick list of answers on the TIA or T-SPLOST as it is also called. TIA or T-SPLOST is currently scheduled for a vote during the primary election on August 21, 2012. [Note from the Editor: Pay special attention to what happens if a county votes against the T-SPLOST and all of the other counties in the region approve this. The penalty doesn't change my personal views or my vote. I know this is legal, but it doesn't make it right. There is a better way to fund our transportation needs in Georgia. A good way to start would be tracking current funds and ensuring that they are spent as economically as possible.]