MOULTRIE, Ga. — On Tuesday, the Moultrie City Council approved a Construction Improvement Plan list to begin efforts to rebuild parts of Spence Field.

The CIP list is one of the first steps in the city’s hope to revitalize the runway of Spence Field. The list is an initial step that will be presented to the Georgia Department of Transportation, according to Pete Dillard, Moultrie city manager.

“This will be a $22 million investment,” Dillard told the council during the work session. 

While the city will be paying a portion of the bill, they plan to get aid from state and federal entities, including GDOT. It is one of the first steps in a five-year overall plan, Dillard said. 

“This has been a project that we’ve been together for quite some time now,” Dillard said to the council. “We are hoping with your support and the support of the other state and federal groups, we will get it moving.”

The council also accepted a bid for a railroad property survey to Dan Hinson Land Surveyor Inc. of Moultrie for the amount of $10,900. The city hopes to use the land, which is currently owned by a railroad company, to build a new bike trail. The survey will be taking place in an area “between First Avenue Southeast and the bypass,” Dillard said.

In other action, the council accepted the bids for the purchase of a side loader garbage truck and a front loader garbage truck from Sansom Equipment of Mobile, Alabama for the amounts of $312,445.79 and $291,555.55, respectively. A right of way bucket truck bid was accepted to Altex Industries, Inc. of Dalesville, Virginia in the amount of $155,797 as well as a backhoe loader from Flint Equipment of Albany in the amount of $109,917.

While the purchase of these products was already in the council’s fiscal year budget, many purchases won’t be made until 2022 or 2023. This is due to long wait times for the items, according to Dillard. 

Both garbage trucks have an 18-month delivery estimate and the bucket truck has a 33-month delivery, according to Dillard.

“The backhoe only has a 120-day delivery time. Which in the past would’ve sounded crazy but now it doesn’t seem that bad,” Dillard joked during the work session.

The next city council meeting is set for 6 p.m. Nov. 16.