Lee officials recognize service of Robert Clay at meeting

LEESBURG – Appointments to boards and Committees took on added significance during Tuesday’s Lee County Commission Meeting.

Consideration of the appointment of Bobby Watson to the Family and Children Services Board for a term of five years carried. The reappointments of Peter Ngwafu and Chris Phillips to the DARTS Citizen Transportation Committee for a two-year term also carried.

Chairman Billy Mathis said he wanted to say something prior to a motion to approve the appointment of James Swain to an unexpired term on the Health Board of Lee County.

“This appointment is to fill the unexpired term of Dr. (Robert) Clay, who resigned,” Mathis said. “Dr. Clay served on that board 62 years. Dr. Clay is now 92 years old, and I’m sure would continue to serve on the board but for his age. He is a treasure to Lee County. He served as superintendent of our schools, helping build the system we now have. He served in many, many other capacities including this. He’s an absolute gem.”

A public hearing was held regarding the closeout of the county’s Greenview Estates water project. It was reported that the project came in under budget, and $61,000 could be returned to the sate, which funded the CDBG project for $436,000. No citizens came forward to offer public comment.

Discussion on providing plexiglass protection for county workers at the Courthouse and the landfill was aimed at protecting employees. Commissioner Luke Singletary recommended that the commission consider having two people working at the landfill on Saturdays with consideration given to reducing the hours of operation on that day to four, thereby keeping labor costs the same.

Singletary also recommended consideration be given to opening the animal shelter for a period of time on Saturdays, making animal adoption more likely for working families.

The bid for repairs to the Parks and Recreation office was tabled, and a discussion on alternative solutions ranged from redefining the scope of the job for rebid to hiring a handyman for the work. Commissioner Rick Muggridge questioned whether a handyman could be hired by the commission for such work.

“Apparently water enters the doors when we get a lot of rain because of the grade,” Singletary said.

The commissioner also noted that there were more than a few thousand dollars of work, adding that the issues of grade and drainage at the site should be addressed to prevent further damage.

Bailey Williams, a recent graduate of Georgia Southern University with degrees in Geology and Chemistry, worked with county staff for 200 hours as an intern under an Association County Commissioners of Georgia grant. Her internship involved going into the field and assembling a GPS data base utility service map of a large portion of Lee County.

File Photo