Bulloch County Commissioners heard from staff Monday in a presentation detailing the breakdown of the Brannen Pond Road project that began during Hurricane Idalia and continued through two historic rain events and Hurricane Helene.
The closure of Brannen Pond Road drew criticism for its lengthy repair timeline, a beefy 464 days, but county staff shared Monday morning that procedures required by FEMA contributed to the timeline. Those extra steps added time, but ultimately saved Bulloch County taxpayers 85% of the project cost – more than $500,000.
Assistant County Engineer Ron Nelson presented slides of construction progress, outlining the pre-engineering process and showing images of the severity of the damage.
He highlighted that once the project was in the Notice to Proceed stage, the contractor provided a 120 day completion target, which was beat by 27 days. McLendon Enterprises finished in 93 days.
Nelson also shared that the project has put the county in a position to move more quickly on FEMA cost-share projects, like Nevils Denmark Road, in the future due to the fact that early planning and FEMA-compliant procurement procedures are already in place. The front end work done for Brannen Pond Road will eliminate time on future projects in the county.
COSTS
Cost Breakdown
Design & Engineering (Kimley-Horn) – $158,000
Total Construction Cost (McLendon Enterprises) – $593,798.49 (up from original contract $547,801 + 1 change order)
Initially, FEMA was only going to approve restoration of the two pipes at a price of $242,219.55, but county staff lobbied for $465,940.78 for a more expansive project that would more adequately improve the infrastructure. With the hazard mitigation proposal ($159,744.84), the net cost was listed at $625,685.62.
Ultimately, FEMA paid 75%, GEMA paid 10%, and Bulloch County paid 15% of the net cost.
FEMA – $469,262.22 (75% of net cost)
GEMA – $62,568.56 (10% of net cost)
BULLOCH – $93,852.84 (15% of net cost)
Bulloch County’s final responsibility with Design & Engineering and the share of construction costs totaled $219,965, but when including the credits for Tropical Storm Debby and the impacts on Brannen Road from that storm, the county’s share could be reduced to $174,065. Nelson shared that, at worst, the county’s obligation will be the $219,965.
Commissioner Timmy Rushing said the road had been a problem for years with the county spending of upwards of $100,000 to repeatedly repair the guardrail. “The county comes out ahead,” he said of the project completion with the assistance of FEMA and GEMA.













