County solicits bids on new Gainous Rd. bridge

Bids are now being solicited for the replacement of the bridge on Gainous Road, which is part of the overall Tired Creek Lake infrastructure improvements.
The bridge project will be paid for using proceeds from a $1.2 million grant awarded to the county in June 2014 by the State Road and Tollway Authority.
The new 120 foot long prefabricated bridge will replace the existing boxed culvert on Gainous Road and will have eight feet of clearance from the bottom of the bridge to the level of Tired Creek Lake at full pool.
The bridge was engineered by consulting engineer Stacy Watkins who attended Tuesday morning’s Grady County Commission meeting to update the board on the project.
According to Watkins, the request for bids will be advertised for 30 days and then it will take 30 days to obtain the necessary bonds and issuance from the successful bidder. He anticipates work getting underway in October and the contract allows for a 180-day completion.
The county road department, under the leadership of Superintendent Stanley Elkins, will be charged with constructing a temporary road to bypass the current bridge and maintain thru-traffic on Gainous Road.
“The contractor could either go to work immediately or be on stand by until the temporary road is put in. It will be a coordinated effort,” Watkins told commissioners.
Commissioner Charles Norton asked if the temporary road could withstand a major rain event. Watkins said the county road department would have to monitor the situation and have road closure barriers on site to go up in the event of heavy rains.
Watkins emphasized that this is a temporary solution and was not designed for a major event.
“We’re taking a chance,” Watkins noted.
Road Superintendent Elkins warned commissioners the county would likely have to lease additional equipment as the work at the lake ramps up. Elkins and his crews have also been made responsible for installing water and sewer conduit below the lake in addition to building the bypass road. The road department is wrapping up construction of a jetty at the proposed marina site.
“We’re probably going to end up needing to lease another excavator and a dozier,” Elkins said.
He added, “I’m not going to put a stop on maintaining roads. We’re still going to be out working on roads.”
Based on Grady County Administrator Carlos Tobar’s recommendation, the county has pledged $521,161.95 it earned in Local Maintenance Improvement Grant funds and approximately $700,000 in Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax proceeds along with in-kind work by the county’s road department as the match for the $1.2 million state grant.
Bids will be opened on Tuesday, Sept. 8, according to Watkins.
Earlier this year, Watkins estimated the cost of the Gainous Road bridge replacement project to cost $300,000 based on his estimate of $50,000 per 20-foot span of prefabricated bridge section.
The state of Georgia is also accepting bids for a new bridge to replace the existing bridge over Sapp Creek on GA Hwy. 112.
The existing 30’ x 81’ concrete bridge will be replaced with a 44’ x 140’  concrete bridge. Georgia D.O.T. officials estimated in January the project would take nine to 12 months to construct. The estimated cost of the project is $1,890,121.29.
Bids for the state project will be opened on Aug. 21.