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Sanders Road dispute continues over guardrail
Forsyth County commissioners appeal to city of Cumming
Sanders web
The Forsyth County commission voted to give the city of Cumming 60 days to respond to a request to install guardrails on Sanders Road. The road reopened to traffic at the end of May after work was completed to fix repairs due to a breached dam in 2013.

It appears issues between the two local governments in Forsyth over Sanders Road will go on a bit longer.

Forsyth County commissioners unanimously voted at a recent work session to give the city of Cumming 60 days to respond to a request sent months ago to install a guardrail over a portion of Sanders Road that was closed for three years.

County Attorney Ken Jarrard said the intergovernmental agreement was sent to the city months ago and that the county has not received a response.

Discussion on the agreement was previously postponed from work sessions in July and August.

Though the majority of Sanders is a county road, the previously damaged portion belongs to the city.

The road caved in as a result of excess water and sediment moving underneath it through an undersized culvert after an earthen dam holding back the former Lake Alice breached on May 19, 2013.

The road was left unrepaired for years due to issues over liability for the road and ongoing litigation.

Work completed includes the installation of a new double box culvert under the road and removing and replacing damaged sections of the pavement, along with reinstalling utilities and widening shoulders.

The city and county governments split the $434,000 cost to repair the path, which reopened to traffic this May.

Prior to the motion that passed, District 5 Commissioner Jim Boff, who represents the area, made a motion to send paperwork to the city, which failed by 2-3 vote, with Commissioners Pete Amos, Brian Tam and Cindy Jones Mills opposed.

“I don’t know why we don’t just send the city of Cumming any information we have that says why we think this is dangerous and possibly ask the board to suggest that they handle all of this and get out of the wasting county time on an [agreement] that may never get through,” Boff said, “and if they don’t think it’s dangerous, so be it.”

Amos said the county would send the paperwork after the 60 days.

The area around the Lake Alice Dam breach has been returned to its natural state, prior to the construction of the dam some 80 years ago.