CAIRO — Grady County is wading closer to starting a heavily-discussed project Grady residents voted on back in 2007. 

A schematic plan design has been crafted for the proposed Barber Park aquatic center project, which originally appeared on the 2007 special purpose local options sales tax (SPLOST) ballot.  

A construction estimate for the project has not been determined, but Grady County Administrator Carlos Tobar said the estimate could be as high as $1.7 million. 

Funding for the project includes $900,000 in SPLOST collections, a $100,000 Department of Natural Resource Land Water Conservation Fund grant, and slightly over $15,000 in donations. 

The remaining funds — approximately $685,000 based on the $1.7 million estimate — would have to be garnered through donations, Tobar noted. 

“I’m confident that we will be able to raise the remaining funds in donations,” he said. 

If enough funds are not collected for the project, the scope of the project would have to be scaled down, Tobar added, also noting the splash pad feature in the project’s schematic design probably would be the first cut.  

The cost estimate is expected in mid-August, according to Scott Sanders, vice president and operations manager of Cox Pools. Project drawings are 98 percent complete and final revisions will follow, Sanders pointed out. 

“We’re close,” he said. 

Other features in the aquatic center’s schematic design include renderings of the proposed play area, pool design rendering, and pool depths and specifications. 

The pool design — a T-shape — is “both a competition and recreation pool,” Tobar said.

“That satisfies everybody’s wants,” he noted, adding the aquatic center area, once erected, will be the focal point of Barber Park. 

The bid procedure, whether bidding project out as a whole or in different portions, has not been determined, according to Tobar. 

“Those discussions we haven’t quite had yet,” he said. 

Final plans and specifications would have to be brought to the Grady County Board of Commissioners for approval prior to advertising bids for the project. 

Tobar also noted the members of the pool committee, which includes two Grady County commissioners, two citizens, Grady Recreation Department Director Becky Bracewell, and Tobar, were in favor of the schematic plan but drew concerns about the remaining balance for the project. 

The deadline for completion of the project is December 2018. 

“For practical purposes, it has to be done by election day 2018, before we ask the voters to approve another SPLOST,” Tobar said. 

Reporter Jordan Barela can be reached at (229) 226-2400, ext. 1826.