West Bibb park proposal heads to committee

A new park in west Bibb County could receive the go-ahead in the next couple of weeks.

The Macon-Bibb County Commission’s Operations and Finance Committee will take up a resolution Tuesday that calls for spending $494,626 for a park located next to the county’s animal shelter. The park would have a recreation field, walking trails and an area for people to walk their dogs.

The funding would come from 2012 special purpose sales tax proceeds. If the resolution is approved Tuesday, then a final vote is expected the following week.

The park would be located at 4280 Fulton Mill Road.

“I want to give thanks to those that have worked really, extremely hard on this,” Commissioner Joe Allen said. “Commissioner Elaine Lucas really came to bat for Lizella and west Bibb County.”

Macon-Bibb officials are also examining the possibility of renovating the West Macon Little League park located off Mercer University Drive. Some of the amenities Allen says he’d like to have at the park are redone ball fields, a new playground, walking trails, benches and possibly an area for people to skateboard.

The West Macon park president recently sent a letter to commissioners saying the park’s fields have deteriorated since the site opened in the early 1980s.

“The money has been spent at other parks, at Grand Opera House, at other locations,” Allen said. “West Bibb, Lizella and some parts of north Macon, ... we have not received a thing.”

Several other recreation measures are also on Tuesday’s commission committee agenda.

One resolution is a $198,000 contract for Travis Pruitt & Associates Inc. to provide architectural and civil engineering services at the Freedom Park ball fields.

Delores A. Brooks Park, formerly East Macon Park, could move closer to getting more renovations. The Operations and Finance Committee is expected to vote Tuesday on a $78,060 agreement with WM2A Architects.

And Bloomfield-Gilead recreation facility could receive $53,905 worth of new fitness equipment, according to the resolution.

Each of the three recreation agreements would be paid for from sales tax revenue.

Garbage bills

There could be some major changes in how garbage and recycling fees are handled.

Commissioner Mallory Jones is proposing to prevent the move to annual billing for garbage and recycling collection. He is sponsoring an ordinance that would allow residents to continue making quarterly payments for those services.

The move to yearly billing was approved 5-3 by commissioners earlier this year. The change was touted as a way to increase collections, thus improving finances for a solid waste department now operating at a deficit.

As part of annual billing, notices would be sent out at the same time as property tax bills.

New garbage cans

Several thousand more garbage cans may become available for Macon-Bibb County residents.

The County Commission’s Operations and Finance Committee is expected to vote Tuesday on an agreement to purchase 3,120 garbage containers. The agreement would also need to be approved by the full commission later this month.

The 96-gallon cans from Toter Inc. would cost the county $158,963.

Anyone interested in requesting new garbage or recycling containers is asked to call 478-751-7400 or 478-803-0499 or use See, Click, Fix at www.maconbibb.us/seeclickfix.

This story was originally published August 7, 2017 at 5:00 PM with the headline "West Bibb park proposal heads to committee."