City of Lavonia To Get Hospital Roads

By MJ Kneiser, WLHR Radio, Lavonia

he City of Lavonia plans to take over maintenance of two roads around Ty Cobb Regional Medical Center.

Last week, the Franklin County Board of Commission voted to sell Clear Creek Parkway and Ralph Owens Parkway to the Franklin County Industrial Building Authority for $311,000.

At the time, Franklin County Commission Chair Thomas Bridges said the sale was a way to re-imburse the county for having spent $382,000 to pay the hospital’s bond debt in December.

Bridges said it was the only way to get the money the county needs.

“The county put in the roads for the new hospital,” Bridges said. “We made a deal with the Industrial Building Authority for them to pay us $311,000 so we could generate revenue for the bonds.”

Bridges said the money will be put back into the General Fund and likely set aside for the June 1 payment.

Monday, Lavonia mayor Ralph Owens confirmed the IBA plans to turn over the two roads to the City.

“So at a later date, the IBA is going to turn those roads over to the City of Lavonia,” he said. “We agreed all along that if the hospital was built, the City would take over the roads.”

He said the City doesn’t expect the two roads will require much expense and maintenance by the road department.

“Those roads were built by DOT specifications and they should last 15-20 years at least,” Owens said. “We inspected the roads and that’s the reason we said we would take them. There are no speed limit signs over there so we have to do those. We will have them as soon as the IBA votes to turn them over to the city.”

Last November, Ty Cobb Healthcare CEO Greg Hearn announced the hospital could not meet its December 1 bond payment.

Hearn has been trying for the past year to find a larger hospital system to either partner with or to buy the hospital outright.

Owens said Monday he has not yet heard anything from Hearn on how that effort is going.