AUGUSTA, Ga. – Workers with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District, at J. Strom Thurmond Project have begun work inspecting and re-painting approximately 60 miles of the existing boundary line, primarily in Lincoln and Wilkes County, starting near New Petersburg Road, near the Lincoln County Transfer Station, and ending near the Fishing Creek Store, south of Elberton Highway.
The work encompasses boundary lines in Charleston Bay, Savannah Bay, Soap Creek Retreat, and Ponderosa subdivisions as well as Eddie Fletcher Park and Elijah Clark State Park. This routine boundary maintenance does not move present property lines. The work makes existing property lines more visible.
R&D Maintenance Services, a contractor with the Corps of Engineers, uses bright orange paint that is normally a 4-inch band around half of each tree to mark the boundary line. To make the lines less obtrusive in adjacent subdivisions, the tree blaze width is reduced to 2 inches on a quarter of the tree. They will also trim heavy brush to clear the boundary lines between witness trees.
Workers scrape old paint off the trees and apply fresh paint to mark the boundary line. If in-ground boundary survey pins are not visible, workers will dig where pins were placed to expose them. The marked trees do not delineate the exact boundary; instead, they “witness” the approximate boundary line. The exact line can only be located by surveying the monuments and pins.
“Painted trees are a guide to locate the physical boundary pins installed in the ground,” said Heather Killips, Natural Resources manager at Thurmond Lake. “When buying property or planning to build on your land, adjacent to public property, a professional survey is a good investment. Monument pins should never be disturbed from their permanent locations. If you don’t see a pin, please call our office so we can help you and correct the situation.”
The contractors will complete work on-foot with hand tools. In most cases, the workers will avoid crossing private property. In the event the workers cannot access public land without first crossing over private property, all efforts will be made to contact the owner for permission.
“It’s also important to know the location of the boundary line when removing trees or vegetation from private property, as it’s illegal to remove trees from public land without a permit,” Killips said. “It’s like going on your neighbor’s property and removing their trees. In instances where trees are removed without permission, the penalty can be a combination of fines and a requirement to replace trees.”
“Adjacent property owners should remove any personal property items which may have wandered across the government line and pets should not be unattended on public land, especially when workers are present,” Killips said. “Work to repaint the government boundary line will continue through the autumn and winter and wrap up before spring arrives.”
For any questions or concerns, please call the J. Strom Thurmond Project Office at 800-533-3478, ext. 1140.
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