At the request of adjoining property owners, commissioners voted Monday to ask a judge to determine access rights to what they believe is a public road in the Salem Church Community.

The decision to seek declatory judgment came after a nearly 45-minute closed session with county attorney Julie Moody after a property owner on Kelley Farm Road allegedly blocked the road with a locked gate and planted trees. The property owner was not identified since the suit has yet to be filed.

“This is an issue where the road – which is a county road – is not being allowed to be open,” Moody said. “It is a public road, and we’re going to ask a judge to declare it as such.”

Moody said the situation was atypical in regards to county roads, and Darren Capps, county engineer agreed.

“Typically, people come and ask the county to maintain a road,” Capps said. “I don’t think we’ve had a complaint like this before.”

Moody said she plans to file the suit within the week.

In other business, the commission:

• amended the contract with the Covington County School Board for school resource officers, which stated the school board would absorb the cost of training a new school resource officer following the Dec. 31st retirement of Deputy Waylon Griggs, Red Level SRO.

• gave final approval for Hideaway Harbor subdivision, a 99-lot subdivision on Patsaliga Creek, pending approval from the county health department;

• gave Susan Harris, county EMA director, the authority to research the purchase of new department vehicle.