Rome native retires as GDOT district chief
Grant Waldrop of Temple replaces DeWayne Comer at the state’s Northwest Georgia transportation office.
The State Transportation Board recognized Rome native DeWayne Comer on Thursday for his retirement after 28 years of service and appointed Grant Waldrop of Temple to replace Comer as the Northwest Georgia district engineer.
Rome Public Services Manager Kirk Milam has worked with both men over the years on Georgia Department of Transportation projects in the community.
He said Waldrop, who was the district traffic engineer, is knowledgeable and responsive.
And he praised Comer’s ability to juggle resources for the area’s short-term and long-term transportation needs.
“DeWayne has such a solid background in construction that, whenever we had projects coming along, he found ways to promote them,” Milam said. “He’s very practical ... While DeWayne was very mindful of standards and regulations, he focused on getting the job done. He had the big picture in mind.”
GDOT District 6 — which covers 17 counties — is headquartered in Cartersville and also has offices located in Rome, Buchanan and Dalton.
Comer has been at the district office for 18 years, the last six of them at the helm. Waldrop’s most recent position was as his assistant.
Floyd County Manager Jamie McCord, who started his public service career at GDOT, called Comer a friend and a colleague. He noted that the county relies heavily on the state for transportation planning and construction.
“We’re going to miss DeWayne. He really worked hard for Rome and Floyd County, trying to come up with as many solutions as possible for us,” McCord said. “But it makes me feel good to know we’ve already got a relationship with the new district engineer.”
Waldrop, who started his career with GDOT in 2004, has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering from Georgia Tech. He and his wife Kimberly Waldrop have three children — Bryce, 12; Riley, 10; and Jayde, 7 — and raise sheep on a small farm.
“I’m pleased to be a member of the team that continues to move Northwest Georgia forward through construction of new infrastructure,” Waldrop said. “Maintaining existing roads and bridges is equally important.”
Waldrop will be overseeing more than 300 employees and working with DOT officials in the adjoining states of Alabama and Tennessee as well.
Comer, a graduate of Coosa High and Southern College of Technology, has a transportation background including experience in urban design, roads and airports. Among the major local projects he guided to fruition are the widening of Ga. 140 and con- struction of the new Rome bypass segments.
Former Rome city commissioner Buzz Wachsteter was a longtime chairman of the city/county Transportation Policy Committee. He said Comer also was a champion of the U.S. 411 connector to I-75, which is still in the works.
“He fully understood that’s vitally important, that transportation is one of the first things industrial prospects will look at,” Wachsteter said. “He wasn’t the final say-so, but he always helped us in the planning phase to make it look as attractive as possible.”
Wachsteter also echoed what others have said about Comer: He was easy to work with.
“He helps you understand the ins and outs of things, what’s going to happen and when,” Wachsteter said. “If you had any questions, he was the answer man. He’ll be sorely missed.”