Toccoa To Use LMIG Money For Sidewalk Project

Toccoa City Commissioners make a decision on what to do with money coming from the state for street-related projects.

On Monday, city commissioners voted unanimously to spend the city’s 2015 LMIG money towards construction of a sidewalk on Big A Road from Rose Lane to the entrance of Wal-Mart.

LMIG stands for Local Maintenance and Improvement Grant and is state money that communities receive to use on projects like street re-surfacing and sidewalk improvements.

A number of weeks ago, Toccoa city staff presented commissioners with a list of possible projects on which the city’s LMIG money could be spent.

The number one project on the list was building handicap ramps at intersections along South Broad Street.

Toccoa City Manager Billy Morse said that city crews have already begun work on that and the city is not going to use LMIG funds on that, but instead find the money elsewhere.

Those ramps are estimated to cost less than $40,000 in all.

After that, commissioners said their next priority is the sidewalk along Big A Road.

Morse said the city contacted KCI Engineering to get a cost estimate of what it would take to complete the proposed project.

“It is $297,500,” said Morse. “That is sidewalk engineering and construction from Rose Lane/Fernside Drive where it stops now all the way out to the light at Wal-Mart Way.”

Morse said the new sidewalk would go on the east side of Big A Road, the same side that the current sidewalk is on now.

Morse said that the city’s approximately $98,000 in LMIG money for this year would go towards the project.

He said the city could then forward fund the rest out of the Commission Reserve Account and re-pay the CRA with LMIG money received for the next two years as well.

Toccoa Vice-Mayor Terry Carter said the Big A Road sidewalk expansion is an important project.

“I think it is a great project,” said Carter. “There are a lot of people that walk up and down Big A. It is safer. I can see where it has the potential to fill in some businesses through there.”

The city also had a number of other proposed projects on its LMIG list, including construction of a proposed turn lane for southbound traffic heading into Stephens County Middle School.

Morse said the city could seek other funds for that project.

Toccoa Mayor Gail Fry said doing something about Middle School traffic is important.

“If you have ever driven over there in the morning and the afternoon, you realize there is a huge need for that,” said Fry of a turn lane.

City officials said they will also speak with the school system about possible options for dealing with Middle School traffic to keep Rose Lane from getting congested.

City commissioners were also given the option of using LMIG money to re-surface streets, but are instead waiting to use SPLOST VI money for that purpose.