A bridge on County Road 6650 will final be repaired this year after the county commission awarded a bid for the project Monday night at its regular meeting.

County Engineer Russell Oliver said this bridge has been unusable for several years as the county has sought the funding to repair the structure.

The bid was awarded for $276,476 and 75 percent of the project will be paid by FEMA. Another 12.5 percent will be paid by the Alabama EMA, leaving the county responsible for just 12.5 percent of the project’s funding.

Oliver said he doesn’t know exactly when construction will begin, but expects the project to be completed by the end of 2019.

The county also approved the advertising of bids for an industrial access project to resurface County Road 7707 to support the company’s recent expansion.

The commission also accepted the change of a precinct for the upcoming general election from the Hastings Hardware building to Brundidge Station. The change was requested due to renovations that will be going on at the Hastings Hardware building during the time of the election due to a grant project at the facility.

The commission also authorized administrator McKenzie Wilson and Chairman Robin Sullivan to finalize details to add an additional school resource officer in the Pike County Schools system.

Oliver also brought to the commissions attention that one of the department’s three road graders has had an engine malfunction and will be out of service indefinitely while the department seeks to get the machine repaired under warranty. The department will be seeking a temporary solution, but Oliver said the department will be down to two graders while an alternative option is found.

The commission elected to cancel it’s scheduled meeting for Monday, October 14 as it falls on Columbus Day. The next scheduled meeting of the Pike County Commission will be held on Monday, October 28 upstairs at the Pike County Health Department.

The work session will begin at 5:15 p.m. and the regular meeting will follow at 6 p.m.

Wilson said the Pike County Jail architect selection committee has interviewed four architect candidates and that TCU Consulting Services will be bringing forward information to the commission in an executive session following the October 28 meeting.