It’s not exactly the Yellow Brick Road, but soon drivers will be able to better access the primary business thoroughfare in Cornelia. And it won’t be a minute too soon for Cornelia businesses. “We know it’s been a significant inconvenience for everyone, particularly Main Street businesses. They understand, however, that this was a necessary project that needed to be completed before new paving was applied over both water and sewer lines,” explains Don Bagwell, Cornelia City Commission member. Bagwell continued, “The time has finally come this year where we must replace earthen pipe that has aged to the point that it is now breaking and allowing roots to grow into the system and block sewage flow in multiple places.”
The $356,000 sewer and water line project by Higgins Construction is being paid for by Cornelia’s Renewal Fund. The promised work-completion date is September 15. The work was necessary as the existing sewer lines are clay pipes and after at least seventy years, they have required on-going repairs, were subject to decay from roots and were costly to maintain. The new sewer lines are PVC. The digging has occurred on both sides of Main Street, as water and sewer lines have to be in separate ditches.
When the project is finished by mid-September, the Georgia Department of Transportation will start resurfacing Main Street. As Councilman Bagwell points out, GDOT is ready to start on the resurface job just as soon as the water and sewer line project is completed. Then, Main Street will take on a new look and its underworld will be good for many more generations. And the local businesses? Sigh…
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