The Henry County BOC recently approved the construction contract for the McDonough Parkway extension. This will be the southwest segment connecting SR 20 / 81 and Henry Parkway.
The McDonough Parkway is an ongoing effort to build a bypass around the square. Henry County SPLOST IV has funded several segments of the parkway, including the paving of Turner Church Road which concluded work earlier this year.
When construction of the new four-lane road was first bid out in November 2017, the lowest bid received was $6.9 million, well over the total available funds. SPLOST staff made the decision to re-bid the project, omitting the final stages of work, to start construction now.
The new lowest bid totaled $5,237,611.00. The county has $4,567,690 in the project account and the BOC passed a SPLOST budget amendment moving $750,000 from the Peeksville Road dirt road paving project. McDonough has $700,000 in city SPLOST funds available for the project, and upon the county receiving those funds, the Peeksville Road budget amendment will go back before the board to be reversed.
The bid breaks down to include $2.9 million for road grading, $1.8 million for landfill removal, $400,000 for other roadway activities, and $100,000 for erosion control.
The $1.8 million for the landfill will remove sections of the old Henry County landfill and replace the soil for suitable road construction. SPLOST transportation director Roque Romero said the landfill removal will have to dig at least twenty feet in order to reach virgin soil. This will be a major undertaking and require significant time during construction of the project.
The stages of construction omitted include laying down the gravel aggregate base, installing curbs, and paving the asphalt / roadway surface. The three items mark the last steps in road construction and will be included in the proposed SPLOST V projects. If SPLOST V passes, completing the road would be one of the first projects to receive funding.
It should be noted that Henry County is not building the intersection at state route 20 / 81. The intersection will be built into a two-lane roundabout and connect with McDonough Parkway during construction of the state route 20 widening project scheduled to begin in 2023. The southwest segment of the parkway will not be open until this is completed.
Henry County and McDonough have coordinated with Georgia DOT to keep a traffic signal at the location until the widening project. McDonough will fund $50,000 of the signal installation costs with Henry County covering the remaining $36,155. Funds will come from SPLOST IV.
Was there any indication of the beginning and completion time for this southwest portion of the parkway?
I am not sure how long the construction will take to complete, but my guess would be 18-24 months. SPLOST V will include funds to lay the asphalt finishing the road and Georgia DOT will build the intersection with state route 20 connecting the southwest segment to the rest of the parkway starting in 2021. The widening project is expected to take three years for construction.
Any word when Peeksville will be up for re-funding?
Peeksville Road paving will be included within the SPLOST V project list. The voter referendum will be in November 2019 for the program.
Construction funds to pave Peeksville between Old Jackson Road and the reservoir have to be included within the next list already, so delaying work between New Hope Road and the reservoir is not a huge setback.