Sanders Road Dispute Featured on 11 Alive News

A Forsyth County road that was severely damaged and closed due to heavy rains last year has yet to be repaired, sparking outrage from residents and an investigation by local news outlets.

11 Alive News featured the dispute about Sanders Road on its Friday newscast. Forsyth County and the City of Cumming, who both say the other should be responsible for fixing the road, met for mediation once earlier this year but have yet to meet for a second time, the station reports.

The segment of Sanders Road between Mary Alice Park Road and Buford Dam Road was washed out during heavy rains in May of 2013 and has remained closed since then. The road closure has forced school children to add an additional 30 minutes to their bus rides to school.

The City of Cumming claims that maintenance of Sanders Road was always the county’s responsibility, while Forsyth County says that the damaged section of Sanders Road is within Cumming’s city limits. Forsyth County is also afraid of a potential lawsuit for filling Lake Lanier with additional silt.

Forsyth County suggested the City of Cumming use $65,000 to buy insurance on the project to protect itself against a lawsuit, but the city attorney wrote in an e-mail that those terms are ”unacceptable.” He went on to say that he believed the two sides were at an impasse.

Watch the 11 Alive report below: