Wednesday, July 06, 2016

Oconee County Commissioners Agree To Spend $10,000 For Design Work On A Mars Hill Road Median Cut GDOT Has Rejected

Part Of Undisclosed Deal

Oconee County Commissioners Tuesday night agreed to spend $10,000 for design work–double the amount originally planned–as part of a previously unknown deal to create a full median cut on Mars Hill Road to provide access to 103 acres owned by Dickens Farms Inc.

The investment could be good money thrown after bad, as Oconee County Public Works Director Emil Beshara told the commissioners that the Georgia Department of Transportation already has rejected the proposed plans for the change in the roadway design.

Commissioner Jim Luke said the commissioners at some point in the past had agreed to a deal with Doug Dickens, owner of Dickens Farms, in which Dickens gave the county some easements for the roadway in exchange for the county getting the median cut.

Beshara said that Dickens had given the county “in excess of $32,000" toward the median cut, and some changes already have been designed and approved, but the county will have to pay an additional $23,000 in construction costs if GDOT allows the changes.

In other action, the Commission, against the recommendation of County Attorney Daniel Haygood and Beshara, awarded a part of a solid waste collection and disposal contract to Oconee Waste Transport even though its bid was more than 7 percent higher than the competing bid.

Commissioners also voted to rezone nearly 2 acres across from Oconee County Elementary School for two fast food restaurants with drive-through operations despite a 9-1 vote against the rezone by the Planning Commission and a letter from Sheriff Scott Berry opposing it.

Beshara’s Recommendation

Beshara told the commissioners on Tuesday night that they needed to amend a change order with Moreland Altobelli Associations Inc. to add an additional $5,000 to pay the firm to create a “design exception/design variance package” making the case with GDOT for the median cut.

The $44,550 change order was on the consent agenda, meaning it was to be approved without further discussion, but it was removed from the consent agenda so it could be amended to add the additional $5,000.

The $44,550 already included $5,000 for design work on the intersection already completed by Moreland Altobelli.

The full median cut will connect the property housing the Athens Area Humane Society Adoption Center and Spay and Neuter Clinic, 1781 Mars Hill Road, with the Dickens property.

Commissioner Luke said he felt the county was obligated to go forward with the median cut design work because of the deal it cut with Dickens and his neighbors, Mary Jane and Randolph Roberts, in the past.

The video below is of the discussion and includes Luke’s comments.

BOC 7 5 2016 Luke on Deal from Lee Becker on Vimeo

Dickens is a prominent land owner, cotton farmer, developer and Board Member at Oconee State Bank.

Public Works Director Beshara told the commissioners that the costs of the construction of the median cut for the Dickens property would be less if the contractor did the work while Mars Hill Road is under reconstruction than if it waited until after that roadwork was completed in about two years.

Unknown Agreement

The deal with Dickens had never been discussed in public before, and even the changes in the median at the Humane Society clinic were unknown to the public until the June 28 meeting of the Commission.

At that session, in response to questioning from Luke, Beshara said that the Moreland Altobelli change order included $10,000 in costs for design of a reconnection of Old Mars Hill Road to Mars Hill Road that had been requested by Commission Chairman Melvin Davis.

The Commission turned down that project once it discovered that Davis had initiated it without their approval.

Beshara also said $5,000 of the Moreland Altobelli change order was for “consideration of a full break at the Humane Society,” but he did not elaborate.

None of the commissioners raised any concern about that $5,000 expenditure.

Luke Disclosed Deal

In the citizen comment section of the meeting on Tuesday night, I asked the commissioners to take the change order off the consent agenda and provide additional information about the $10,000 cost for Old Mars Hill Road and about the cut at the Humane Society.

When it came time to act on the consent agenda, Davis, without making reference to my request, indicated that the consent order should be removed so Beshara could amend it.

Luke then provided the rough outlines of the deal struck with Dickens, and Beshara provided the cost estimates of future construction.

No one provided any more information on the $10,000 expenditure for the Old Mars Hill Road redesign.

Oconee Waste Transport

Beshara last week had told the Commission that he recommended that Advance Disposal of Milledgeville be awarded part of the contract for solid waste collection and disposal services for the county and that Republic Services, with facilities in Barrow County, be awarded another part.

Advanced Disposal was low bidder for the roll off service at $210 per unit, and Republic was the low bidder for 6 yard and 8 yard dumpsters, at $18.55 and $23.44.

Oconee Waste Transport had bid $267 for the Roll Off units and $19.86 and $26.10 for the 6 yard and 8 yard dumpsters. These bids were 27.1 percent, 7.1 percent, and 11.3 percent above the low bids.

Since the OWT bids were more than 7 percent higher than the low bids, Beshara told the commissioners last week, county policy did not allow him to favor the local bidder over the low bidder.

Despite that, the commissioners told him they wanted to find a way to award the contracts to Oconee Waste Transport, a local firm headed by Matt Elder, a Commission-appointed member of the county’s Industrial Development Authority.

County Policy

On Tuesday night, Beshara said he was sticking with his recommendations, based on the county policy. His comments are in the video below, which is of the entire discussion of solid waste collection and disposal services.

OCO: Solid Waste from Lee Becker on Vimeo

County Attorney Daniel Haygood said the Commission could change its policies, but “I’d hesitate to change them midstream.” Haygood advised that “If this has raised an issue you are concerned about, then you probably ought to revisit it” in the future.

Beshara said overly favoring local bidders could cost the county money in the future.

“If we establish a practice or overt policy of grossly favoring local companies it may affect our ability to get outside firms” to bid, he said.

Davis invited Elder to speak to the Commission, as he did last week, and Elder said he felt the Board should negotiate on the figures in the bids.

The commissioners agreed to go along with Beshara’s recommendation on the Advanced Disposal bid for the roll off units, but Commissioner William “Bubber” Wilkes made a motion to give OWT the contract for the dumpsters. Commissioner Mark Saxon seconded the motion.

County Administrative Officer Jeff Benko asked the pair to amend the motion to require Elder to agree to meet the low bid, which Elder said orally he would do.

Commissioners Luke joined Saxon and Wilkes in bypassing low bidder Republic Services in favor of OWT.

Restaurants Rezone

Commissioner Saxon recused himself from the discussion of the rezone request by Stonebridge Partners LLC to convert the nearly two acres on Hog Mountain Road just west of Butler’s Crossing from one business designation to another to allow for the drive through restaurants.

At the Planning Commission, concerns had been raised about traffic created by the proposed two restaurants opposite the entrance to Oconee Elementary School and around the corner from Oconee County Middle School.

Sheriff Scott Berry raised the same concern in his letter to the Planning Commission.

Ken Beall, representing Stonebridge Partners, argued that most of the traffic to and from the restaurants would not be at the times when school traffic is heaviest.

The Oconee County Planning Department staff had recommended approval of the rezone request.

B.R. White, director of the Planning Department, said in an email message today (Wednesday) that the county’s Unified Development Code does prohibits some types of uses of land opposite schools, such as for adult entertainment and adult book and novelty stores and for alcohol sales.

The code does not prohibit restaurants, even those with drive-through operations, opposite schools.

Video

The complete video of the Board of Commissioners meeting is below.

OCO: BOC 7 5 2016 from Lee Becker on Vimeo

17 comments:

rightway1974 said...

Hopefully there will be another recession soon. That's the only thing that will put a stop to the unbridled development.

Steven said...

Great sentiment rightway, hoping for widespread misery to fulfill your individual house for less development and progress

The OWT deal is underhanded and may open the county to a lawsuit. What's the point of the bidding process if you just allow one bidder the chance to match the low?

I understand Mr. Luke's sentiment but symbolically honoring a backroom deal with real tax money is wasteful.

Anonymous said...

Why is there no discussion with OWT and Dickens in the article. It would be nice to have the background on why they approached the BOC. Maybe seeing both sides of the issue would paint a different picture for us.

Anonymous said...

Just another meeting of the Oconee County Board of Commissioners -- talking about "deals done in the past" and "never discussed in public before." Does that bring to mind the description "under the table"? The good old boy network is alive and well. I will be so glad to see the #1 good old boy moving on out of the chairman's seat soon. And on the question of bids, why have bids at all if the commissioners are going to finagle a way to give the business to their chosen provider. Just saying again -- on all of these things that Lee Becker brings to light, think about the many that he has not found yet.

Lee Becker said...

I indicated that Matt Elder said the county should negotiate regarding his response to the Request for Proposals. He lowered his price when Benko requested it. Last week, he said the county should calculate the bids differently. His comments are included in the videos.

Doug Dickens did not appear before the Commission either week. I am trying to get details on the agreement, which, as anonymous indicates, will help to provide more information regarding the decision.

Thank you for the feedback.

Lee

Anonymous said...

I mean really... how many times does the phrase "against recommendation" have to be used before we vote these people out? Crooks, all of 'em. VOTE. THEM. OUT.

Zippity said...

I guess the purpose of the bidding process is to bring down the bids of the local provider. It is probably a lot of work to make a bid. If I was one of the other providers, I would be very unhappy at this process. This way of working will probably reduce outside bidders, leaving the taxpayers with more to pay. Deals with Mr. Dickens have happened repeatedly so why expect anything different. It will be interesting to see if the GDOT will reverse itself on the cut through.

Anonymous said...

Does anyone know who to contact at GDOT to let them know about the back door behind the scenes deals that have been made concerning the cut thru on Mars Hill Rd?
Or is it possible that they may also be awarding favors?
Maybe if enough people complain to them they will turn it down again and save we taxpayers some money.

Anonymous said...

So Gdot rejected it, but we're going to do it anyway. AND we're not going to tell you who we are doing it for either.

I'm not sure how there can be an undisclosed deal using county funds. Anyone up for filing a Freedom of Information Act Request again the county commissioner's office concerning this deal?

Lee Becker said...

I have filed several Georgia Open Records Act requests and will report on the findings as I make sense of them.

Jamie Boswell, owner of the Boswell Group in Athens, is the area representative to the Georgia Department of Transportation.

Lee

Anonymous said...

Except that Jamie Boswell and his company benefits from the many land deals that the BOC makes. He isn't really representing the people of Oconee as much as he represents the BOC and his real estate company. We've seen previous stories about his "involvement" with BOC dealings. More of the good ole boy network...

Thanks Lee for your continuing coverage of the BOC. At some point, we as residents will wake up to these corrupt dealings who benefit only a few.

Anonymous said...

The Fox guarding the hen house.

Anonymous said...

We will have some old crooks moving on from the BOC and new crooks coming in?
County is in for a rough next 4 years with the idiots we got coming in.

Anonymous said...

I have filed a request too. Lee, if you want, I will contact you privately and we can compare what each of us got. I went after emails and documents, so its a toss up as to what I get. Even if they try to gouge me on the cost, in this case I think it is worthwhile for the public to know WTF is going on.

Someone else want to go after information concerning the fast food places across from the elementary school?

Lee Becker said...

I will be glad to compare information.

Basic information on rezones is on the county web site under the Planning Department.

Lee

Anonymous said...

I am going to contact a few of the atlanta news stations and see if they are interested in taking a look into the oconee county boc backroom dealings. this seems like the exact thing they would like to expose.

Harry Thomas said...

I have contacted the Atlanta news stations in the past about what's going on in Oconee County. Never heard back or saw any stories. It will probably take someone taking them to court. I witnessed this conquer and divide mentality in metro Atlanta specifically Gwinnett County. Eventually the long time residents just give up and move. Then the next round of residents move in and not knowing what has already been lost just think that over development is business as usual. Can anyone else hear the dominos falling?