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EDITORS’S NOTE: This is part one of a four-part series on the recent Chamber of Commerce Voices of Leadership luncheon. In order to cover all four participants, we have chosen to break down the event into four articles. The first will cover County Commission Chairman Patrick Crews.

On Monday, the LaGrange-Troup County Chamber of Commerce hosted its Voices of Leadership in Government Luncheon. The goal of the event is to provide insight into how local government leaders are addressing challenges and driving progress in the community. LaGrange Mayor Jim Arrington, West Point Mayor Steve Tramell and Hogansville Mayor Jake Ayers, along with County Commission Chair Patrick Crews participated in the part forum, part luncheon moderated by former Chamber Chair Jamey Jackson.

The participants were asked a wide range of questions ranging from infrastructure and public safety to more specific questions on the communities they lead. Chairman Crews answered questions from the county’s perspective.

INFRASTRUCTURE

Chairman Crews said one of the biggest issues for the county is public transportation and spoke of some of the changes coming to Troup County, specifically the Georgia Department of Transportation’s (GDOT) plan to reroute the LaGrange bypass.

“We’re currently in discussions with GDOT about some infrastructure improvements with our roads. For several years, we have been in conversation about US 27 and what I call “the bad curve” north of town, and trying to resolve that. It’s pretty much been decided GDOT is going to take that road and turn it left if you’re coming south and they’re going to connect it over to Davis Road and widen all the way to the mall,” Crews said.

“That’s not what we wanted done. We didn’t think that was the best route to direct our traffic, but that’s what’s going to happen,” he said.

Crews said the county has also been in discussions with GDOT about the possibility of doing a Transportation Local Special Option Sales Tax (TSPLOST) to pay for needed roadway improvements such as the widening of Vernon Road.

“We are still in discussions with GDOT and trying to work with them about ideas to improve the roads around Troup County.

The only problem you have to know with the DOT is when they talk in terms of improvement, we could be talking five years, 10 years or more,” Crews said.

“From infrastructure in the county, the [Highway] 27 project, the inland port, the improvements that they want to do out on Lafayette Parkway are the big discussions right now,” Crews said.

RECREATION

The county has recently completed several recreation projects with the renovation of the William J. Griggs Center, the new Don Weatherington Pool and the Oakfuskee Conservation Center.

“It’s been an exciting time in the county the last several years, particularly for recreation,” Crews said. “There was a lot of federal and state dollars flowing for the last several years and we were able to take advantage of some of those funds to improve our recreation. I’m one of those people that believe that recreation is very important to our citizens, and we’re always fighting those folks that don’t see the value in it.”

“If any of you go out around any of our parks, you will generally see a lot of people. So I think the exciting things that we’ve had going on,” he said.

Crews said the Oakfuskee Conservation Center has been in operation for about 14 months with tremendous success. He said it stays booked and has been very profitable over the first year of operation. The county is currently in negotiations with the developer to make more improvements to Pyne Road Park.

“It would include some lodging and more recreational opportunities. We’re going through that right now. We firmly believe that’s been a great asset for our entire community, our small businesses, and for our citizens and tourism to the lake,” Crews said.

Crews also spoke of the planned pickleball complex near the Active Life Senior Center in LaGrange.

“Pickleball is one of the fastest growing sports in America right now. Through some funding that we’ve received from the state and thanks to the Callaway Foundation which is always so supportive of our projects, we’ve been able to start construction on the 19-court pickleball complex, right there next to the George Harris Field,” Crews said.

Crews said they are hoping the facility will be completed by June.

The next big project is the soccer complex at the former Whitesville Road School, which is still in the works.

LIQUOR SALES

Crews was specifically asked about the recent approval of county liquor sales and how he expects it to impact revenue and local businesses.

“This was an issue that has come up a couple of times during my term. I guess this time it finally got to a point that it was decided the best way was to put it on the ballot and let the citizens decide,” Crews said.

Crews said the Board of Commissioners was approached by three local restaurant owners who felt like they were at a disadvantage in the incorporated areas because they could sell drinks for their patrons, so they put it on the ballot.

“I can say to you honestly, I had no one come up and say a word to me about that issue, so it passed overwhelmingly with the citizens,” Crews said.

Crews said restaurants in the county that want to sell liquor drinks can seek permits at the government center.

“We think that probably safely by the first of February, they will be able to do that,” he said. “We’re not doing package stores or those types of things, but it will just make it a level playing field for them.”

“We’ve got a restaurant out of the marina, we have an Italian restaurant on the north side of town and we’ve got a golf course down on the south side of the town of the community. So I don’t think that you’ll see a lot in the foreseeable future.”

Crews said he doesn’t expect more than two to four to apply because the unincorporated area just doesn’t have that many restaurants and they have to serve food too. Bars by themselves are not allowed.