The Georgia Department of Transportation will cover the bulk of the cost to repair a section of New Liberty Road damaged by flooding during Hurricane Delta. This week, state DOT Commissioner Russell McMurry approved approximately $590,000 in grant funding to help cover the costs of installing a new culvert and reconstructing the road over Shoal Creek.
State Representative Terry Rogers (R-Clarkesville) helped Habersham secure the funding.
On October 9, the remnants of Hurricane Delta dumped upwards of 10 inches of rain on parts of the county. Severe flooding during the deluge damaged the culvert and caused the asphalt over it to buckle. According to the engineer’s report, the location requires a double-barrel 10×12 box culvert to carry the 2,500 acres it drains without causing a headwater condition.
“Habersham County staff has been actively pursuing these emergency road maintenance funds since just a few days after Hurricane Delta, which caused widespread damage through the county,” says Habersham County Public Information Officer Carolyn McDuffie.
After the storm, Habersham County Commission Chair Stacy Hall declared a local state of emergency. “Plans and bidding documents were quickly assembled and advertised on a compressed schedule, which is allowable under a local state of emergency,” explains McDuffie.
The county received four bids on November 20. According to McDuffie, the low bidder was Higgins Construction with a total base bid of $616,560.”
The county’s initial estimate for repairs was $1 million.
At a called meeting on November 25, the Board of Commissioners awarded the contract to Higgins Construction to make the needed repairs and reconstruct the damaged culvert. Once work begins, it’s expected to take between 60-90 days to complete.
The damaged section of New Liberty Road has now been closed to through traffic for more than a month. The county shut down that section of the road on October 21 and set up a detour between Ben Jones and Shoal Creek Roads. Officials later adjusted the detour route to bypass Shoal Creek, which is gravel and was also damaged by the storm. The existing detour extends four miles north to Watts Mill Road and will remain in effect until New Liberty Road reopens.
