County Commission to choose 2021 chair Tuesday, sign off on road paving plan

The Floyd County Commission is scheduled to vote Tuesday on who will chair the board in the coming year.

Commissioner Scotty Hancock is finishing his second year in the position and Commissioner Wright Bagby Jr. has served two years as vice chair. Bagby and Commissioner Allison Watters were both reelected to new four-year terms on the board in November.

A vote on who will chair the County Elections and Registration Board also is scheduled.

Chairman Tom Rees is rotating off the board. Local businessman Corey Townsend was appointed last month to fill the third slot, serving with veterans John Scott Husser, an attorney, and college professor Melanie Conrad.

The only regular elections scheduled for 2021 are municipal, but the citizen board will be focused on hiring a professional elections manager to run operations going forward.

County Commissioners will meet at the Forum River Center, 301 Tribune St., to allow for safe spacing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Caucus starts at 4 p.m. with the business meeting following at 6 p.m. The meetings are public and everyone attending is asked to wear a mask.

The list of roads scheduled for resurfacing through the state Local Maintenence and Improvement Grant program is expected to be presented for approval.

Annual LMIG allocations are based on the centerline road miles and population of each local jurisdiction. They’re funded through a division of state gas tax revenue, so they’re expected to be slightly lower this year due to the coronavirus restrictions.

Floyd County is slated to receive a little over $1.1 million for roads in the unincorporated area, compared to $1.2 million this year. Rome and Cave Spring will get separate awards for the roads inside their borders.

Commissioners also have a public hearing scheduled to take comments on the proposed 2021 budget.

Among the other items up for approval is a redirection of $29,016 in revenue from the 2017 special purpose local option sales tax.

The SPLOST money had been allocated for tennis courts in Shannon but that project came in at less than the budgeted amount. The savings will be added to the Brushy Branch dock and gangway project budget.

Also on Tuesday, a ceremony is planned to honor Chief Deputy Tommy Mcguire, who is retiring from the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office after more than 40 years of service to the county.