The Pierce County Industrial Development and Building Authority (PCIDBA) recently discussed and/or voted on the following during the regular monthly meeting held December 3.
IDA board officers: The IDA board opened up nominations for the elected officers positions. There were no changes to the currently elected positions with all officers being individually nominated and seconded before being reelected en masse by unanimous vote. Steven Paul is chairman, Rodney James is vice chair and Andy Brannen is secretary/treasurer.
New park signage: IDA Executive Director Blake James reviewed various options from three bids for new signage in the industrial park. The two front runners were quotes from Georgia SBJ Company of Waycross and Gardner Printing of Baxley, which differed not only in pricing, but materials, lighting options and long-term maintenance. After discussing the options available and the preference of business owners within the park, the board unanimously voted for a vinyl faced, fully illuminated and backlit sign from SBJ at a price of approximately $38,750.
In the words of board chairman Steven Paul, “We’re finally going to have a sign out there.”
Partnership update (Pierce County): County Manager Raphel Maddox was not present at the Wednesday meeting, following the announcement of his resignation at the county commission’s meeting the previous evening.
Chairman Neal Bennett delivered a quick update regarding various county projects and statistics. Bennett said Whitney Lake Road is now completely closed to through traffic. The paving and improvements project on Tornado Road is now underway with a $6 million price tag largely funded by a Community Development Block Grant. In the last month 1,757 miles of road have been graded. 97 new home permits have been issued year to date, which is a new county record. Finally, since November 2024, the Sheriff’s Office has seen a 15% increase in calls.
Partnership update (City of Blackshear): Blackshear Police Chief Chris Wright attended the December meeting by special request to deliver an update about the planned second entrance to the Pierce County industrial park.
The project had been previously delayed by the federal goverment shutdown, but things are once more underway, though slowly. “When the government gets started again, it goes slow,” said Wright. In spite of this, Wright is optimistic about the project, which qualifies for a federally directed spending program. Engineers can now begin preparing designs and Wright said there is the potential for the project to qualify for grant match forgiveness, meaning some of the cost of matching the federal funds could be recouped. Wright says the project is currently estimated to be complete by the end of next year.
Partnership update (Chamber of Commerce): Chamber of Commerce Director Christi Pitts gave a brief update, saying the chamber membership rolls continue to grow just as Pierce continues to grow.
Working in partnership with its members, the chamber is in the process of assembling “Angel Bags” to assist the Pierce County Food Pantry during this holiday season. The goal is to donate 400 bags this year. Pitts says the average cost to fill a bag with dry and canned goods was approximately $16 and she welcomes any donations from local business and the public to help reach their goal.
Pitts also mentioned attending an event at Reedy Creek at the invitation of Offerman mayor Brenda Denison, which she took as a sign of the chamber’s public profile expanding beyond Blackshear.
Minutes/Finances: The PCIDBA’s November minutes and financial statements were unanimously approved and entered into the record with no comments or questions.
Closed session: The IDBA board went into a 10 minute closed session. The topic under discussion was real estate.
When the board returned to regular session, a unanimous vote approved the sale of 15 acres in the industrial park to Ca-Jenn Construction at $7,250 per acre. The initial estimate of land to be sold was later updated to 17 acres total.
Next meeting: The PCIDBA will hold its next meeting at 8 a.m. Wednesday, January 7, 2026 in the Chamber of Commerce boardroom, located in Blackshear’s Historic Train Depot.
