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AMERICUS – The Sumter County Board of Commissioners (BOC) unanimously approved two vehicles from Sumter County Fire and Rescue (SCFR) and one vehicle from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) to be declared as surplus items and available for sale on www.govdeals.com at its work session on Tuesday, October 11.

Commissioner Clay Jones was not present at the work session and was doing some training. Both County Administrator Rayetta Volley and Finance Director Della Griffin were at also not present at the work session, but both joined via Zoom conference call.

The two vehicles that the SCFR wants to have declared surplus include a 1998 GMC Kodiac that has 87,874 miles on it and a 2013 Ford F-150. The mileage for that vehicle was not listed. Both of these vehicles will be listed on the website www.govdeals.com.

SCFR Chief Jerry Harmon reminded the BOC that it had voted a year and a half ago to replace some vehicles and that those two vehicles will be declared as surplus. Board Chairman Mark Waddell asked for a motion for approval to declare these two vehicles as surplus and to have them advertised on www.govdeals.com. Commissioner Scott Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Jesse Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.

The BOC then approved the declaration of surplus of a vehicle from the SCSO. The vehicle is a 2008 Ford Crown Victoria that has 263,004 miles on it. This vehicle will also be placed on www.govdeals.com. Sheriff Eric Bryant, who joined the meeting via Zoom, told the BOC that his department is wanting to place this vehicles into surplus and to have it advertised on www.govdeals.com. Bryant added that he wants this vehicle in surplus with the understanding that if it does not sell, it will be given to the scrap yard. Waddell asked for a motion to approve the declaration of the 2008 Crown Victoria to surplus and for it to be advertised on www.govdeals.com with the understanding that if it doesn’t sell, it will be given to the scrap yard. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.

The BOC also approved the 2021 and 2022 Local Maintenance and Improvement Grant (LMIG) Close-Out Documents. Sumter County Department of Public Works (DOPW) Director Jim Littlefield told the BOC that this is a formality that his department certified to the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) that the LMIG funds were used for the fixing of certain roads, which is what the DOPW told GDOT the funds would be used for. Littlefield asked the BOC to approve these documents and for Waddell to sign them so they can be sent on to the GDOT.

Waddell then asked for a motion to approve the LMIG Close-out Documents. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.

In a related issue, the BOC also approved the 2023 LMIG Road List and Submittal of Application to the GDOT. Littlefield told the BOC that there are two roads that his department will use the LMIG funds for next year. They plan to finish Middle River Road picking up at Lane Store Road and working on it up to District Line Road and continuing the roadwork on to Upper River Road. Littlefield went on to say that he was a little bit disappointed in the amount of money the county received from these funds and was hoping to receive more. “We received approximately $686,000 from the state with our 10 percent match and the TSPLOST funds so we’ll have roughly $750,000 to use for the LMIG,” Littlefield said. He went on to say that in January 2023, he would bring the BOC the list of TSPLOST roads to approve for the 2023 Paving Project.

Waddell asked for a motion to approve the 2023 LMIG Road List and Submittal of Application to GDOT. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.

The BOC also approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Sumter County Correctional Institute (SCCI). Waddell stated that this is a standard that the BOC has done for several years and that nothing has changed within the MOU. County Administrator Rayetta Volley, who joined the meeting via Zoom, stated that this form actually allows inmates of the SCCI to have social security cards if they are within 120 days of being released and it allows the correctional institute to apply for social security cards for them.

Waddell then asked for a motion to approve the MOU between the SSA and the SCCI. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion passed unanimously.

Up next on the agenda for the BOC was the approval of the Local Assistance and Tribal Consistency Funds (LATCF) in the amount of $100,000. County Financial Director Della Griffin, who took part in the meeting via Zoom, stated that the U.S. Treasury has allotted Sumter County and other counties $100,000 and it is part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). “There are some restrictions on it. You can’t use it for pensions and lobbying and things like that, but you can use it for capital projects and things like that, but I would need your approval to request the funding,” Griffin said. Waddell stated that these are additional funds that the county can take advantage of and use to help offset other things. Waddell then asked for a motion to approve the acceptance of the LATCF in the amount of $100,000. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.

The BOC also unanimously approved Sumter County Fire and Rescue to apply for the Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) Grant. SCFR Chief Jerry Harmon stated that his department applied for this grant last year, but was denied. “The total amount would be somewhere approximately $2 million that we will be asking for on this grant,” Harmon said.

Harmon added that as part of that $2 million, he will be asking for $200,000 for turn out gear and about $1.8 million for new air packs. Waddell asked for a motion to approve the SCFR’s request to apply for the AFG Grant. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously.

Later on in the work session, Sumter County Parks and Recreation Department Director Tim Estes told the BOC that the SCPRD will begin construction at The Columns at Boone Park on the SPLOST project to install new electronic basketball goals on Tuesday, October 18 and that it should be completed by Thursday, October 20. Estes added that the building would be closed down to the public while that is going on. Estes also stated that new parking lot lights have been installed at the fairgrounds with new metal polls, as well as new LED security lights, which in his opinion, will be cost-efficient.

Estes continued his report by updating the BOC on the Improving Neighborhood Grants Program, which he has been working on daily for about two weeks. “One of the things that we have discovered since I last spoke to you is that Barlow St. Park is not in a qualified area,” Estes told the BOC. “Barlow St. happens to be the dividing line between a qualified area and a non-qualified area. I think the last time I spoke to you, we knew that Sumter County’s regional park on 19 was not in that area, but the parks that we do have in that qualified area are Rock Hill Park, Boone Park, The Columns at Boone Park and Bessie Mayes Circle Park,” Estes continued. He went on to say that the SCPRD is going to request approximately $1 million from this grant and if they are able to receive those grant funds, the plan is to do a total renovation of those four parks with that grant funding and they would totally renovate the Sumter County Regional Park and the Barlow St. Park with the SPLOST funds that are already allocated. “All of our parks, if we receive the full amount of this grant, everyone of them would receive a total renovation,” Estes said. He went on to say that the grant deadline is November 18 and that he would be sitting down with Gerald Mixon of the River Valley Regional Commission next week regarding the issue.

Estes added that SCPRD youth soccer and youth football have two more weeks to go and that the SCPRD will be sending teams in both sports to the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association (GRPA) District Tournaments in November. He also stated that the annual recreational youth football championships would be held at Alton Shell Stadium on Saturday, October 29.

One other item Estes mentioned to the BOC was the upcoming Adult Co-Ed Kick Ball Tournament to be held from Monday, November 14 to Thursday, November 17. The Americus Times-Recorder will have an update on this upcoming tournament in the sports section.

The BOC also approved several Board Appointments at the work session. Board Chairman Waddell made a motion to approve David Austin to succeed Norman Graves on the Zoning Board of Appeals. Graves’ current term expires on July 31, 2023. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion to approve passed unanimously. Waddell then asked for a motion to approve Brandon Vann to succeed Marcus Chatman on the Zoning Board of Appeals. Chatman’s term

expires on July 31, 2025. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion passed unanimously.

In addition to his service as a BOC Commissioner, Commissioner Roberson has also been serving on the Americus-Sumter County Airport Authority (ASCAA) and his current term expires on December 31, 2022 and he will be stepping down, but Commissioner Jesse Smith wants to take his place on this board and it is a two-year term and expires on December 31, 2024. Waddell asked for a motion to approve Commissioner Smith’s placement on the ASCAA. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve passed unanimously. Herschel Smith, who also serves on the ASCAA, was unanimously reappointed to another two-year term by the BOC. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Jesse Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to approve Herschel Smith’s reappointment passed unanimously.

The BOC also approved the appointment of Commissioner Jesse Smith to the Sumter County Chamber of Commerce. Smith will succeed Mark Waddell, who in addition to serving as the BOC’s Board Chairman, has also been serving on the Chamber of Commerce. Waddell stated that he would step down once his term expires on December 31, 2022. Waddell entertained a motion to appoint Commissioner Smith to the Sumter County Chamber of Commerce. This is a three-year term that expires on December 31, 2025. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion passed unanimously.

The BOC also voted unanimously to reappoint SCFR Chief Jerry Harmon to the Middle Flint E911 Authority, where he will serve another three-year term. The term expires on December 31, 2025. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion passed unanimously.

The last board appointment the BOC approved was the reappointment of Alphonso Baker to the Sumter County Board of Tax Assessors. Baker’s current term expires on December 31, 2022 and his next three-year term will expire on December 31, 2025. Commissioner Roberson made a motion for approval and Commissioner Smith seconded the motion. The BOC voted and the motion to reappoint Baker to another term passed unanimously.