The Lowndes County Board of Supervisors is weighing its options for replacing a volunteer fire station in Lone Oak destroyed by a November 2022 tornado.
Fire Coordinator Neal Austin came to the supervisors Friday morning to decide how to proceed with the replacement of the 3,500-square-foot structure, which previously held two bays and hosted two fire trucks.
The station’s two trucks were also damaged by the storm that moved through northern Lowndes County, Austin said. One of those has been repaired and the other will be fixed after the new budget year kicks in on Oct. 1.
The board for that fire department wants a larger station to replace the old one, Austin said.
“The station that they are looking at has jumped from 3,500 square feet to 5,900 square feet,” he said. “It’s a five-bay station. I can’t come to y’all and say that’s a good justification for the money we have.”
As an alternative, Austin floated plans that had originally been drawn up for a 3,700-square-foot, four-bay station on South Frontage Road.
“Our future expansion (plans) justify that,” Austin said.
Austin said the approximate cost for a metal building is about $200 per square foot now, meaning the 3,700-square-foot footprint would cost about $740,000 and the 5,900-square-foot footprint would cost about $1 million.
District 5 Supervisor Leroy Brooks asked how much money the fire station had on hand. Austin said it had about $164,000 in insurance money to put toward the cost, plus another roughly $150,000 in cash on hand.
“The rest, we would probably borrow the money from the board of supervisors and then set up a payment plan,” Austin said.
District 1 Supervisor Harry Sanders moved, with a second by Brooks, to have Austin bid out both possible buildings and come back with concrete costs. The motion passed unanimously.
Main Street grant match
The board voted to pitch in $30,000 in matching money toward grants Main Street Columbus is pursuing to improve wayfinding and traffic flow on Fifth Street between Main and Second Avenue North.
Earlier this month, Columbus City Council agreed to pony up about $95,000 in matching funds for the project, which includes two pieces. The first would add wayfinding – signage and information kiosks – to downtown. The second would reorganize traffic flow on Main Street at the Fifth Street intersection, as well as expanding curbs with so-called “bump-outs” to make it easier for pedestrians to cross at Fifth and Main and Fifth and Second Avenue.
When the council approved the match, it also asked Main Street to approach the supervisors and the Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau and ask them to pitch in matching funds.
Friday morning Brooks moved, with a second by District 4 Supervisor Jeff Smith, to put $30,000 in the hat, contingent on the grants being awarded. It passed unanimously.
Hospital trust fund
The supervisors voted unanimously to pull about $1.1 million out of the hospital trust fund.
The trust was established with $30 million the county received from the sale of the county hospital in 2006. In 2013 state law was changed to allow the county to invest a certain amount of the money in stocks and bonds.
Each budget year the county may make a withdrawal of up to 3% of the value of the investments, but not if the balance goes down. Last year the balance went down, and the county was unable to withdraw.
One potential use for the money is to make payments on the bonds the county issued to build the Lowndes County Sportsplex. However, District 5 Supervisor Leroy Brooks had another suggestion.
“We don’t have to spend this money right away,” Brooks said. “I think to move that sportsplex to where it is to a different level there needs to be some real consideration for a multi-purpose building. … We’ve got some flexibility to set this money aside.”
Brooks suggested meeting with the local legislative delegation and asking for money to build a building.
“Having $1 million in skin in the game says a lot,” Brooks said.
The county has twice applied for a Defense Community Infrastructure Program grant through the Department of Defense to fund a building that would double as a gymnasium and community storm shelter, but has not yet won any money.
Brian Jones is the local government reporter for Columbus and Lowndes County.
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