RH votes against keeping OMI contract

Jeff Whitte

Updated: Oct 21, 2013, 5:27 PM

Published: Oct 21, 2013, 5:29 PM

Calling it a move that will save taxpayers money and keep millage rates low, the Richmond Hill City Council voted unanimously Tuesday against keeping the private company OMI to run the city’s public works department next year.
The measure becomes effective Jan. 1 and officials said it will save more than $350,000 — a figure based on OMI’s $3 million annual budget and the city’s plan to hire Braddy Enterprises Public Works Division LLC of Savannah to run Richmond Hill’s utilities on an interim basis for about $2.6 million annually.
The move is part of a plan to bring operation of the city’s utilities “in house,” according to Mayor Harold Fowler.
“We’re going into a new wastewater treatment plant that’s going to cost us between $25-28 million and we feel like we probably need to put all of this back in house,” he said. “That way we will have somebody who works for the city who will know all about the wastewater treatment plant, rather than have a contractor operating it for us.”
The new wastewater treatment plant, the single-biggest expenditure in the city’s history, is expected to be operational in 2015.
City Manager Chris Lovell said other considerations included gaining manpower for the city’s park and tree operations that’s currently devoted to OMI two days a week.
OMI took over the running of the city’s utilities in 1999. It is a subsidiary of Colorado-based CH2M Hill, one of the largest firms of its kind in the nation. Started in Hinesville, OMI now handles public works for 14 municipalities around the U.S.
A spokesperson for CH2M Hill/OMI said in an email Friday the company hopes to meet with city officials soon.
“It’s been our pleasure to serve the city for the past 13 years. We’re very proud of the strong performance of our people and their dedication to the community,” said Susan Mays, vice president for marketing and strategic initiatives. “We look forward to meeting with city officials directly to discuss their decision and our path forward. We remain fully committed to delivering the best possible public works services for the citizens of Richmond Hill.”
The issue arose near the end of Tuesday’s council meeting and Lovell and Fowler both recommended that council approve the measure.
Mayor Pro-Tem Van Hunter followed with a motion in favor of the change in utility management, saying it was “an opportunity to save the city and taxpayers a substantial amount of money and maintain the same level of services we currently provide.”
The decision to drop OMI is another in a series of actions officials say are aimed at cutting costs. Earlier Tuesday, the city voted to switch its phone and Internet provider to Comcast from CenturyLink, saying it was a savings of about $700 a month.
And in January, the city renegotiated its contract with The Wilderman Group to run the City Center, which will save Richmond Hill about $560,000 annually, officials said.

Record April boosts Savannah's container trade at port

The Port of Savannah moved 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units in April, an increase of 7.1 percent. - photo by Provided

GardenCityTerminal — The Port of Savannah moved 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units in April, an increase of 7.1 percent. - photo by Provided

Bryan County News

Updated: May 23, 2018, 1:59 AM

Published: May 23, 2018, 2:00 AM

The Georgia Ports Authority's busiest April ever pushed its fiscal year-to-date totals to more than 3.4 million 20-foot equivalent container units (TEUs), an increase of 8.8 percent, or 280,000 TEUs, compared to the first 10 months of fiscal 2017.

"We're on track to move more than 300,000 TEUs in every month of the fiscal year, which will be a first for the authority," said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. "We're also anticipating this to be the first fiscal year for the Port of Savannah to handle more than 4 million TEUs."

April volumes reached 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units, up 7.1 percent or 23,700 units. As the fastest growing containerport in the nation, the Port of Savannah has achieved a compound annual growth rate of more than 5 percent a year over the past decade.

"As reported in the recent economic impact study by UGA's Terry College of Business, trade through Georgia's deepwater ports translates into jobs, higher incomes and greater productivity," said GPA Board Chairman Jimmy Allgood. "In every region of Georgia, employers rely on the ports of Savannah and Brunswick to help them become more competitive on the global stage."

To strengthen the Port of Savannah's ability to support the state's future economic growth, the GPA Board approved $66 million in terminal upgrades, including $24 million for the purchase of 10 additional rubber-tired gantry cranes.

"The authority is committed to building additional capacity ahead of demand to ensure the Port of Savannah remains a trusted link in the supply chain serving Georgia and the Southeast," Lynch said.

The crane purchase will bring the fleet at Garden City Terminal to 156 RTGs. The new cranes will support three new container rows, which the board approved in March. The additional container rows will increase annual capacity at the Port of Savannah by 150,000 TEUs.

The RTGs will work over stacks that are five containers high and six deep, with a truck lane running alongside the stacks. Capable of running on electricity, the cranes will have a lift capacity of 50 metric tons.

The cranes will arrive in two batches of five in the first and second quarters of calendar year 2019.

Also at Monday's meeting, the GPA Board elected its officers, with Jimmy Allgood as chairman, Will McKnight taking the position of vice chairman and Joel Wooten elected as the next secretary/treasurer.

For more information, visit gaports.com, or contact GPA Senior Director of Corporate Communications Robert Morris at (912) 964-3855 or rmorris@gaports.com.

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