Phase I Archaeological Survey of State Road 17 at Blue Jay Road

On behalf of Atkins North America (Atkins) and the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT), New South Associates (NSA) conducted a Phase I Archaeological Survey of the proposed intersection improvements at State Road (SR) 17 and Blue Jay Road in Effingham County, Georgia. The intersection is the location for road improvements and construction related to GDOT Project P.I. 0015589, which entails the construction of a two-lane roundabout at the intersection. Currently, SR 17 and Blue Jay Road are both two-lane roadways with 12-foot travel lanes, graded shoulders, and open drainage ditches. Existing right-of-way (ROW) for both roads measures 80 feet wide. The portion of SR 17 in the survey area is classified as a State Bike Route (GA Bike Route 95 Coastal); however, no pedestrian or bike facilities exist along either road. The proposed project design calls for a 165-foot inscribed roundabout with two 15- foot wide travel lanes, as well as the construction of a truck apron varying in width between 10.5 and 18 feet with a central island. Along the outside of the roundabout, curb and gutter would be installed with a mountable curb along the inside of the truck apron. The roundabout shoulder would measure 16 feet wide. After construction is complete, Blue Jay Road will have two 12- foot lanes and a 10-foot shoulder, of which four feet would be paved. SR 17 would have two to four 12-foot lanes, a 12-foot shoulder, and a 10-foot paved multi-use trail for pedestrian and bike traffic. Proposed required ROW along SR 17 measures 80-158 feet wide and 80-140 feet wide along Blue Jay Road. The Environmental Survey Boundary (ESB) for the project contains approximately 17 acres of land, extending 585 meters along SR 17 and 560 meters along Blue Jay Road. The width of the ESB varied between 55 meters and 102 meters wide.

As a result of the survey, NSA located one previously recorded archaeological site (9EF198) and identified one new archaeological site (9EF310). Both sites are nineteenth-century historic sites along SR 17 that were found to lack significant data potential for the identified portions in the ESB. However, because both sites extend beyond the ESB, their overall eligibility for the National Register for Historic Places (NRHP) remains unknown. While NSA recommends no further work for the portions of the sites within the ESB, an environmentally sensitive area (ESA) should be created for the portions of each site that extend beyond the ESB to protect unknown archaeological deposits.