Hard Labor Creek Management Board Still Waiting on Loan Documents From State

The Hard Labor Creek Regional Reservoir Management Board has revised its schedule for approval of the $32 million in loans the state is offering for construction of the reservoir because the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA) has not yet provided the loan documents for review.

Project Manager Jimmy Parker told me Thursday that he expects to receive the loan documents on Oct. 26 and that he anticipates that the Oconee County Board of Commissioners will approve the two loans at its Dec. 4 meeting.

Originally, Parker and the Management Board had expected to receive the documents by Oct 8, but Parker said GEFA is behind schedule because the documents are different from the ones the Authority usually writes. The loans are for 40 years, and GEFA usually makes loans for 20 years, Parker said earlier.

Parker said Thursday that the whole schedule will be pushed back a month, but he didn’t see any problems because of the delay. He has gone ahead with the prequalification for firms wanting to bid on construction of the dam and with the bidding for road relocation, he said.

For additional information on the delay, go to Oconee County Observations.