During a brief Tuesday meeting the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors tabled a potential partnership with the city.
County Administrator Ralph Billingsley briefed the board on a proposal to install U.S. Geological Survey monitoring equipment along Magby Creek, which frequently floods the Masonic subdivision in East Columbus. The equipment would provide a greater period of warning to local emergency crews in the event of an impending flood, allowing time to evacuate residents.
The proposal is for the city and county to share the costs of the installation and maintenance of two monitoring stations at an estimated combined cost of more than $68,000 over a three-year period.
District 1 Supervisor and Board President Harry Sanders asked Billingsley if an exit strategy existed in the event the monitoring stations failed to perform as expected. Billingsley stated he didn”t know but said he would find out before the supervisors” Jan. 14 meeting.
The board delayed the decision until its next meeting.
The Columbus City Council asked the city”s federal programs director to begin researching grants for the project at its Dec. 21 meeting.
Jason Browne was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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