Albany utility OKs negotiations for utility easement from Albany to Sasser

ALBANY — The Albany Water, Gas & Light Commission board gave interim General Manager Tom Berry the authority to try and negotiate the purchase of a utility easement along a “rails-to-trails” railroad bed that runs from Washington Street downtown to just east of the city of Sasser.

Despite utility attorney Sam Engram’s warning not to “get the cart before the horse,” WG&L board members said they liked the idea of clearing the way for potential projects along the easement path.

“There would be several potential projects along this easement, which runs for 13.6 miles,” Berry told the board. “I’d ask you to approve the purchase with the contingency that the cost not exceed $150,000.”

Engram, meanwhile, said after the meeting, “There are some serious legal issues that have to be cleared up before me move forward with a purchase. We don’t want to install a gas line and have the railroad come back later and tell us we have to take it up.”

Commission board members Chad Warbington and Bob Hutchinson praised Berry for “thinking outside the box” to bring the proposal before the board.

“This is thinking outside a box, a box that has always been the county line,” Warbington said. “This gives us an opportunity to extend our services outside the county and bring additional revenue to the city.”

Added Hutchinson: “We know in 2018 the MEAG (Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia) money (from credits returned annually) is going to run out. We’ve got to be aggressive in finding other avenues to generate more dollars. This proposal gives us an opportunity to do that. The dollars here are going to get tighter and tighter.”

Albany Mayor Dorothy Hubbard, who serves as chair of the WG&L board, said purchasing the utility easement would “position us to work with any new development (along the railroad bed).”

The utility board also approved the low $451,525 bid by R.A.W. Construction of Tallahassee to install 6,650 feet of 6-inch high-pressure steel pipeline that will carry natural gas to the Albany MillerCoors plant. WG&L Engineer Lee Daniel said the bid came in at almost half of the projected ($800,000) cost of the project.

Half of the $451,525 will be paid by Miller/Coors, which Daniel said was switching from coal to natural gas as part of a green initiative. R.A.W.’s bid beat six others, including a high bid of $786,493.56 by Harrison and Harrison of Athens.

“Part of this contract includes a commitment to have this pipeline installed and up and running by September,” Daniel said. “The folks with R.A.W. have assured us they would have no problem meeting that deadline.”

Asked by Hubbard if the project will disrupt traffic near the Miller/Coors plant, Daniel said there might be a lane closure on Mock Road for a brief period.

Berry also told the board that a planned public hearing to discuss a West Albany water tank had been cancelled while WG&L officials “explore every option” to increase pressure in that area. Berry confirmed that one of the options being explored is working with Lee County officials.

“We’re going to make the improvements that will give our customers adequate water pressure out that way,” Berry said. “But before we pull the trigger on spending $2 million for a new water tank, we want to look at all options. And while there has been nothing more than a conversation at this point, one of our options is interconnection with Lee County.”

Lee County has a water tower a short distance from the site where the West Albany tower would be erected.