ST. MARYS, Ga. – Some people who live on Borrell Boulevard in St. Marys, Georgia, are growing frustrated over a small bridge in their neighborhood that has remained closed for years after being deemed unsafe.
The closure has impacted school bus routes, trash pickups, deliveries and some residents’ daily routines — so they reached out to News4JAX for answers.
Scott Dubois, who lives near the bridge, told News4JAX the city said it was a Georgia Department of Transportation project, so News4JAX called GDOT — and was initially told it wasn’t their project.
News4JAX then called St. Marys Assistant City Manager Charlie Williams, who sent a detailed email explaining the bridge project details and agreed to meet with residents at the bridge.
At the bridge, Dubois asked Williams questions about the bridge.
“I feel like the residents of St. Marys have been more than patient,” Dubois said. “I was using this bridge on a daily basis.”
Another resident called it “a big inconvenience” to have the bridge closed.
Dubois questioned whether it had been inspected and who was responsible.
“The bridge is inspected almost yearly,” Williams said, adding that GDOT also inspects it after storms or when water reaches the bottom of the bridge.
Williams said inspectors later found “the deterioration of the pillars.”
Williams said the city put “$100,000 toward the project,” but the rest of the funding is state and federal, and “St. Marys has zero control on the timeline because it is a GDOT project.”
News4JAX later got back in touch with GDOT, which confirmed it is, in fact, a GDOT project. The GDOT representative told News4JAX they don’t anticipate construction will begin until 2029, and residents said that timeline is disappointing.