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Politics & Government

Matthews Road Will Not Be Abandoned

Neighbors who use it told the Oconee County Board of Commissioners Tuesday they'd be concerned for their safety if the road were closed.

The Oconee County Board of Commissioners struck down a request to abandon a county road on Tuesday after a handful of residents voiced opposition to the plan, citing safety concerns.

County officials were deciding whether to abandon a 1200-foot long road known as Matthews Road south of Hog Mountain Road.

The request to abandon the road came from Tony Townley who owns property on the road, and wants the road abandoned so that he may run irrigation lines underneath it.

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Townley is the lone property owner on Matthews Road, but several residents next door on Aycock Road travel down Matthews Road every day, and want the road to continue to be maintained by the county so that they can avoid a longer, more dangerous route.

Do you travel on Matthews Road? Tell us in the comments.

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“It's far safer in my opinion going out to Matthews Road then it is going down Aycock Road out to Rays Church Road, because the curvature of the road is such that I can see cars coming at me,” said James Knecht, who lives on Aycock Road.

Debra Brown also lives on Aycock Road and, as an emergency medical technician, likes to have the shorter route so she can respond to her job quickly, and so law enforcement and emergency medical personnel can get to her neighborhood faster.

“That can make a drastic impact running a 911 call,” Brown said. “Two to three minutes can save lives.”

After hearing residents pleas, commissioners decided not to abandon Matthews Road and instead asked county Public Works Director Emil Beshara to work on drafting an agreement with Townley to allow him to run the line.

The county typically doesn't allow private property owners to run irrigation lines under county roads, but may make an agreement if the landowner agrees to fix any damages the road department may make during routine maintenance or resurfacing work.

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