Well if this is handled anything like the way Nodine has handled the sidewalks in Semmes from MGM to Semmes Middle School, it will never get completed. Everyone will hear promise after promise but for some reason they can never seem to follow through. And as for Dean,two years ago, I lost faith in him after he was at Faith Academy assuring us that the road construction beside the school would be handled over the summer and would be complete before school started. Well the construction did not start when he promised, but did however start at the beginning of school which caused accidents. I don’t believe anything that is being said by anyone that holds a position of any type, I will stick to seeing is believing. For years family members of mine have tried to turn over their private road but they have been given multiple reasons on why the county will not except it. I guess we will see what happens.

I haved called Nodines office several times about the flea markets on Howells Ferry and he will not even return your call.  I sure hope someone runs against him on the next election, I want to see him gone, ya’ll are right they are useless.  As the old saying goes its not how much money you have but who you know (in Mobile i think its just the opposite) I can’t believe the people of south Mobile even put Dean back in office? And as for the school bus on Howells Ferry its stops at EVERYBODY’S house!

Mark my words.The County is going to make it virtually impossible to do anything with these dirt roads.We are backed into a corner with all the stupid stipulations.And the Commission and County are going to determine this law in a way
that still gives them the option to not do ANYTHING.That’s the way all these bills are written.Sit in The County Commission office for a day.See what big-wigs walk in the door.You will be able to figure out where the money is going and it AIN’T going to be on dirt roads.

Also, everyone is going to have to sign a petition accorrding to this too. Now that’s all fine and good when people are upset about pot-holes, but are they REALLY going to want the county to own the property, in some cases literally to their front door. These homes aren’t always set way back off the road-so what the county requires, may well come through some of their porches…

These folks are not exactly Donald Trump-so what about the financial hardship it is going to cause to pay for the pipe, move meters, and whatever else is required? I’m not condeming them for being a squesky wheel-but sometimes it’s best to fix that squeak yourself, rather than waiting for a grease jockey to do it for you…They may have gotten their “law,” but it may end up being one of those laws-like spitting on the sidewalk-that just sits on the books. It’s there, but nothing is done about it-know what I mean?

Cici-it was about 20 years ago, and we were told that because private roads were not maintained and there were no fire hydrants, you could not get insurance. It may have been that particular companies policy, I don’t know…Anyway, I don’t live on a private road, but did live on a dirt road (ahh, for the good ole days). Anyway,I live in an area that has numerous private roads now, and the folks use their tractors and boxblades to maintain it. Even those on county dirt roads do the same between the every month county grading it gets…

I just hope these folks aren’t thinking they are getting some magic cure-all. I have a feeling they may be disappointed when they see what is required from them as far as easements/right-of-ways and the individual financial cost to move meters, place drainage pipes and so on. From experience, I can tell you, having drainage pipes under your driveway changes the way the water flows from the road, and not always for the better…

Rmseek, I’m not sure how long ago you bought land, but you can indeed get insurance for your home on private roads. The home I live in has had insurance since it was built 25 years ago. Back in the day living on a private road was no problem at all being only a handful of people lived on them. As the population increases wear and tear begins. Only way to turn the road over to public is for EVERYONE to sign a petition for it. We tried this about 8-9 years ago where I live and 2 people refused to sign it for whatever reason. So petition was denied.  Emergency service had been denied here once before, fire trucks apparently could not get down the road to put out a neighbors house fire. They lost everything and since then we have kept our road maintained ourselves.

Did Tiffany check the facts about schoolbus and emergency service on these dirt roads? I don’t think the school buses have to give you door stop service-they don’t for PAVED roads either. They will have a stop where maybe 10 or so kids wait-the kids WALK to and from the stop. Big deal. As to emergency vehicles…I have been down MANY a dirt road, private or otherwise-including this one-yeah, it’s bumpy, yeah there’s huge puddles when it rains-ever heard of the shoulder of the road??? Defensive driving?

Why not try to get the road changed to a public dirt road? Did ya’ll check into that? It would seem more beneficial to NOT be on what is considered a private road, because if I remember correctly when I bought land years ago-you can’t get insurance for your home on a private road. Seems to me like ya’ll are in for some HUGE expenses just to get the county to maintain “part” of the road, in “some” instances.

Thanks to Spencer Collier for his determination to help get this dirt road bill passed.However,we still have to deal with two County Commissioners
who will not be concerned with helping anyone
that can not bring a photo opo or make it appear they have brought progress to Mobile Co. all by themselves.Mike Dean is not concerned with anything but the jelly in his Krispy Kreme
doughnut and Steve Nodine stands by to hand
him a napkin.

My question. Why would you move to a place with a private road.Knowing that someone had to maintain it. Did you think the realator would? I live on a dirt road. It is not private. It stays in terrible shape most of the time. When it is in good shape the four wheelers tear it up before a school bus ever gets close. Mythoughts. Buy a tractor with a scraperblade and do it yourself, charge your neighbors,or don’t fix their part of the road. That way you can pay for part of the tractor,and possible write it off on your taxess.

Forgive me if this is a silly question to ask, as I know virtually nothing about this topic. But, if the county has deemed these roads private, who is solely reponsible for them? Everyone living on one of these roads must sign a petition for repair. Does this mean all home owners have partial and equal control of the portion of road in front of the property they own?

Why would someone choose to live on a private road as opposed to public?