Government capital projects aplenty
Both the City of Calhoun and Gordon County governments have plenty of capital projects either recently completed, well underway, or in the early planning stages.
Gordon County Administrator Jim Ledbetter and Calhoun City Administrator Paul Worley recently updated the Calhoun Times on the progress of those capital projects.
GORDON COUNTY — JIM
LEDBETTER:
“Gordon County is pleased to have recently completed the renovations of the 1962 Courthouse. This project allowed us to bring the elections office back to the center of our community and expand the office space and courtroom space for the Magistrate and Probate Courts. The combination of this project and the recent Judicial Building project has positioned Gordon County for future growth.
“Gordon County has also expanded the Records Retention Building and is almost completed with the construction of a new Evidence Building. Both of these buildings are vital to the community of Gordon County and these projects ensure us that we will have the space needed for the records as our community continues to grow over the next 30 to 50 years. Both the Judicial Building and the 1962 Courthouse projects were SPLOST funded.
“Other projects there are in the process include the renovations of the 1913 Administration Building (the old Thomas Funeral Home) and the construction of new administration offices for the Public Works Department. The Administration Building recently had the roof replaced and is now undergoing renovations to the interior of the building. Both the Administration Building and Public Works Administration Office projects are SPLOST funded.”
CITY OF CALHOUN —
PAUL WORLEY:
“Projects are progressing well. The old Police Station building will now be the Community Development Office and will house building inspections and code enforcement. Their current office is at 700 W. Line St., and they share this location with Calhoun Utilities. This move will also allow Calhoun Utilities to have additional space to expand into, once Community Development moves downtown. When the renovations are complete, the building will be more historically accurate to the original 1935 building. The project should be completed by this summer.
“The other project is at 325 S. Wall St., and will be the new Fire Administration Building. The City bought this property which is next to Fire Station No. 1 and has allowed us to double our acreage with this contiguous piece of property. This was a great opportunity for us to plan for future growth. Unfortunately, once the front porch was removed, it was discovered that the support system on the front of the house was woefully inadequate.
“The front of the structure is being lifted so a proper foundation and retaining wall can be built per our structural engineer’s recommendation. Once the renovations are complete in the next few weeks, the building will house some of our Fire Administration personnel and fire inspections. We are currently very limited on our office space in the Fire Department, so this is a welcome and needed addition.
“We are currently underway on adding eight new pickleball courts, pavilion, and additional parking at the Calhoun Recreation Department. We have a new pedestrian bridge that is being fabricated to cross Oothcalooga Creek towards the south end of the park. We hope the installation of the bridge can occur this spring or summer. This will allow us to complete our disc golf course by expanding to 18 holes. We are now working with an architect to help develop plans for a new basketball gym and renovations to the Billy Bearden Center. The Waste Water Treatment Plant is working on plans to construct a new maintenance building. We also hope to begin planning for Fire Station No. 4.”