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More road problems heading to County Council for February meeting web posted January 26, 2009 Below: (L-R) Mr. Alexander, Mr. Jackson. Mrs. Blackwell, and Mr. Ashcraft view maps and photos of the roadway.  MERRIWETHER – Though
the unpaved roads and
infrastructure on the New Nine at
Mt. Vintage has been a hot potato for
the Edgefield County Council, they are going to be dealing with
another
road at next week’s meeting. Townes Road has been passed on to the
county council yet again by the transportation committee seeking to
have a variance to right of way widths in order to pave the road. The
endless debate, that has now stretched nearly two decades, is no closer
to being resolved than it was when it began. “I think it is time to
come to a permanent resolution on this once and for all,“ Merriwether
County Councilwoman Genia Blackwell said. Townes Road lies within her
district.Councilwoman Blackwell and Councilman Rodney Ashcraft met with the two sides in the debate, those who want the road paved and those who don’t, on Sunday.  Townes Road
residents Bill Jackson, Erin Weaver, and Ken Alexander met
with Mrs. Blackwell and Mr. Ashcraft Sunday afternoon and the group
walked a good portion of the road as the residents expressed their
concerns and the problems with the blind curves (left) and crests and
the
narrow width of the road. “There have been a number of wrecks,” that
involved rollovers Mr. Weaver said. He contributed those to a driver
meeting oncoming traffic and running off into a ditch.The group said there were problems that they felt were dangerous for school bus drivers, delivery trucks, and the residents because the road remains a dirt road. The group provided aerial photographs, topography, and possible ways to deal with rainwater diversion in order to show the need for the road to be paved. However, the problem with paving the road is that the county does not have the proper fifty-foot right of way easement that is required for paving. Mr. Weaver and Mr. Jackson said the county has access to a thirty-two foot right of way and that it is possible to pave a two-lane road within those confines. Not so fast says members of the McKie family who owns the land that boarders both sides of the first 1,000 feet or so of the road for the past near century. David McKie, one of those owners, said the original road was granted by a “gentleman’s agreement” that allowed another landowner access to his property through theirs a half century or more ago. Mr. McKie said they have never given the county any more right of way than the exiting roadbed which is roughly eighteen feet when it was taken in as a county road. The McKie’s claim the county has been slowly taking land at will during the scraping of the road that was originally given as a one-lane roadway and has increased the original road to the current 18 feet. “They’re not getting anymore,” Mr. McKie said. “We’ve been neighborly and tried to work with everyone, but there is a limit and it’s been reached.” Sandy McKie said that he questioned the feasibility of paving the road and the added expense that would be incurred by the county for allowing a road that does not adhere to the standards set by state and local law. A memo provided to both groups by Councilwoman Blackwell from L. D. Nance and Associates Engineering firm updated in December of 2008 clearly states that it would be impossible to divert rainwater runoff without the cooperation of the McKie family. “There is no solution to taking the water elsewhere.” The McKie’s have made it clear they would not allow any further incursion upon their property than has already been allowed. That is the main roadblock in getting the road paved in addition to having to close the road to all traffic during the construction process that would leave the sixteen families who reside along the road no access to Martintown Road for the weeks it would take to complete the project if the variance was even granted. Also pointed out were the complaints supporting the road paving such as the blind curves and blind hills. Those issues would not be resolved by paving the road and would actually lead to increased traffic and people driving faster therefore increasing the propensity of wrecks and possibly the loss of life. Merriwether Councilwoman Blackwell said, “The matter has been akin to beating a dead horse until it was a skeleton, then beating the skeleton until it was dust, and now we’re just beating the dust into the ground. It is time to solve this problem.” Mrs. Blackwell made it clear to both sides that she believes in private property rights saying, "I will never vote to take someone's property." Councilman Ashcraft agreed. Those on both sides of the road paving issue were said to be calling to be placed on the agenda for the February 3, 2009 County Council meeting. Councilman Rodney Ashcraft said with the county council dealing with the Mt. Vintage and Townes Road issues, "I look for another three-hour meeting." © Copyright 2009
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