Paulding commissioners have approved a contract to construct a multi-purpose park in Burnt Hickory and voted to save money by refinancing water and sewer bonds.

Approval of a contract with Hogan Construction to build the park at a cost not to exceed $9,950,482 “has been a long time coming,” said Parks & Recreation Director Michael Justus. He said the park plan has been reviewed since March by a group comprised of County Administrator Mike Jones, Water System Director Michael Carter, Community Development Director Chuck Rann, DOT Director Scott Greene and County Engineer Bruce Coyle.

Justus said contracting is “an open-book process” with several portions of the project still available for bids. “We will set up town hall meetings to open it up if local folks want to get involved,” he said.

The county will construct the park with special purpose local option sales tax (SPLOST) money “that is there” and has to be spent on park projects, said Justus.

Board of Commissioners Chairman David Austin noted that Hogan Construction Co. pays taxes in Paulding.

The park site is in the Post 4 district of Commissioner Wayne Kirby, who thanked department heads for their hard work on the project and for “coming up with a very, very nice park.”

The board also renewed its contract with Northwest Georgia Regional Commission that allows Paulding to use three vans to transport senior citizens and deliver meals on wheels. Justus said seniors needing the services can contact Libby Spencer at 770-443-8873.

Justus also reported that an estimated 7,000 people attended the county’s annual Trick or Treat Village at Earl Duncan Park at Paulding Meadows. He said numerous county departments and about 40 volunteer groups staged the event.

Lani Skipper of the law office representing the county presented the resolution to refinance an aggregate of $17,755,000 in water and sewer bonds. “Pricing was better than when we started in September,” she said, adding that the bonds will be paid from water system revenues.

Bond rates in September were estimated to save the county $1.1 million, but more favorable rates since then are calculated to save $1,890,000, said Cliff “Bucky” Kimsey of Morgan Keegan & Co.

Skipper said the savings can be invested in water system projects, perhaps including flood damage repairs.

The board approved two applications forwarded from the Planning Commission meeting Sept. 22, where the Planning Commission had recommended approval on a 5-0-1 vote for both.

A renewal application by Jonathan D. Robbins for a land-use permit on about 1.995 acres at 1004 Sleepy Hollow Drive for a part-time firearm repair business in an accessory structure was approved 4-0, with Commissioner Tommie Graham absent.

A renewal application by Nancy P. Andreycak for about .665 acre for a land-use permit for a chiropractic office at a residence at 1218 Pace Road was approved 4-0.

There was no opposition to the applications from the public and no one spoke at the meeting.

Tom Milanese requested improvements in the county Web site to allow residents to quickly identify which post they live in and the county commissioner who represents them.

“I had to go through four steps in the process to find the commissioner who represents me,” said Milanese. “Many residents cannot navigate the system as I did and it would be good to improve the paulding.gov Web site.”

“I suggest that you have it set up so that a resident types in their address and the post and commissioner’s name would be shown,” said Milanese.

Austin thanked Milanese for his comments and said, “this will be a part of our next generation Web site.”

The commission honored Private Bonnie A. Johnson with a Certificate of Recognition for her exemplary military service.

“Bonnie is a lifelong resident of Paulding County and a graduate of Hiram High School,” said Austin. “She rescued a fellow soldier by carrying them down three flights of steps to safety.”

In other business Oct. 27, the board transferred alcohol and Sunday sales licenses at Stars & Strikes from Linda G. Robertson to Chadwick Plumley and accepted streets in Harmony Creek and Willow Ridge subdivisions for perpetual maintenance.

(Tom Morris contributed to this report)