More historic courthouse upgrades OK'd
Nov. 11—VALDOSTA — Lowndes County approved more than $250,000 in funding as part of the $10 million renovation of the historic downtown courthouse.
Chad McLeod, director of the county engineering department, told commissioners a Historic Lowndes County Courthouse Rehabilitation and Restoration furniture package was designed to fit all the spaces within the courthouse once the construction is complete and includes contemporary furniture and historical period furniture.
Business Interiors, a Tallahassee, Florida-based firm, was the winning bid for that portion of the project. — Base bid: $109,923.14. — Period furniture bid: $164,560.29.
Total bid: $274,483.43.
The long-awaited renovation of the historic Lowndes County Courthouse, a $9.8 million rehabilitation project approved by the county commission previously this year, is being funded through SPLOST VIII monies.
The county contracted with Gladwin Vaughn Architecture and a joint venture made up of Allstate Construction and Cauthan Construction companies.
The county has been overseeing the revitalization of the courthouse since August 2018 with plans of using the building as a regional welcoming center and travel hub for visitors, as well as housing multiple public agencies such as Valdosta Main Street.
Other plans include keeping one floor, a courtroom, to serve as a venue for weddings and perhaps other events.
Renovations are underway.
According to McLeod, the second floor of the Judicial Complex Administration building is being renovated to make way for the county inspection department and improvements were necessary before the space is occupied.
Renovations to that space include flooring and additional improvements. The commission approved the lowest bid that came in from Kellerman Construction.
That portion of improvements included: — Renovation: $289,682. — Additive Alternative: $23,600.
Total bid: $313,282.
In other business, Danny Weeks, director of Lowndes County 911, told commissioners that sometime during the summer, the department started getting reports of degraded radio functionality.
An investigation found the Valdosta radio tower and the Naylor tower sites had lightning damage, and the board approved emergency repair work to correct the issue.
The costs of repairs include: — Valdosta Tower site repair: $23,893.30. — Naylor Tower site repair: $62,614.55.
Approximate total repair cost: $86,507.85.
Lowndes County has been awarded $50,000 to continue the local Strengthening Families Program.
The amount will services for at least two cohorts, an increase over the single cohort provided with the initial funding. Each cohort is a minimum of eight and a maximum of 12, youth and their families.
This grant program was originally funded in April for the implementation of evidence-based programs and prevention strategies for youth who are first-time offenders, diverted from the juvenile justice system or charged with a status offense and identified as at risk.
Since the training costs are reimbursed, there's no direct budget impact to the county.
Peaceway Counseling proposes providing two cohorts for $50,000 which includes training for two additional staff.
The Criminal Justice Coordinating Council has indicated it may be able to provide the training at no cost to Lowndes County or the provider, which would reduce the proposal of Peaceway to $49,400.
The board accepted Peaceway's proposal. — Program costs: $50,000. — Juvenile Justice grant: +$50,000. — Total cost to county: $0.
The board approved a public hearing item for lighting districts for these subdivisions:
Enhanced Decorative Lighting District
Kinderlou Forest Subdivision, Phases 8A (52 lots) and 9 (58 lots).
Basic Decorative Lighting District
The Landings Subdivision, Phase 2 (65 Lots).
Quarterman Estates Subdivision, Phase 3D (21 lots).
Walker Run Subdivision (48 lots).
The de-annexation of a Hahira lot was added by Chairman Bill Slaughter at a request made during the meeting; commissioners unanimously voted, saying they "don't object."
