OKTIBBEHA COUNTY — An Oktibbeha County supervisor attempted to single-handedly fire the county road manager, prompting other board members on Monday to rally around the embattled employee.
District 2 Supervisor Orlando Trainer asked for Hal Baggett’s resignation Feb. 18 over concerns Baggett was more worried about “trying not to get fired” than running the department effectively.
Because an action such as firing an employee needs three out of five supervisor votes, Baggett did not resign. The board did not vote to fire him.
Trainer brought up the situation following Baggett’s department report at Monday’s supervisors meeting, citing that Baggett has indicated several times he was afraid of being fired. Trainer said if Baggett is continuously operating with unease, he does not think Baggett can perform his job to the best of his abilities, ultimately negatively affecting the county.
“I’m thinking that your perspective has made you not as effective as you could possibly be,” Trainer told Baggett.
Trainer told The Dispatch he feels Baggett shows favoritism or caters to particular supervisors, including Trainer, and does what they ask even if Baggett does not agree in an effort to protect his job security. Trainer said while he is satisfied with the work Baggett has done in District 2, he does not think he can operate effectively if he lives in fear.
Baggett, defending himself before the board on Monday, said his job is dependent upon what the board wants, with the law stating he works at the will and pleasure of the board. He said he knows he has to keep them satisfied to ensure he stays on as road manager.
“At any time, I walk in the door, I can be terminated,” Baggett said. “That’s not an illusion.”
Baggett hired former county administrator Emily Garrard to work part-time in the road department, helping in the office, to which Trainer questioned Monday. Baggett said he has had several people quit their positions in the department and needed help.
“The people that we are hiring are not to increase the number of people in the road department,” Baggett said. “Those people are replacing ones that have left. The road department is in an ongoing situation. Today I might have enough. Next week I may not.”
District 5 Supervisor Joe Williams said he felt Trainer should have handled the situation differently and not asked for Baggett’s resignation without first consulting the board.
“Rather than going to an employee and telling them they need to (resign), I think that should come before the board and it be a board discussion in executive session,” Williams said. “We should make that decision as a board and not have one person go to another person.”
District 4 Supervisor Bricklee Miller, who has routinely been critical of Baggett’s work performance, said Baggett made a valid point regarding concern for his job. The board voted to keep Baggett as road manager at the beginning of the year, and she said he must ensure at least three people on the board are happy at all times.
“Mr. Baggett has been approved to stay in his position,” Miller said. “We operate as a board, and we voted to keep him.”
Trainer was the supervisor who recommended the hiring of Baggett in 2017, and he said he feels responsible for the things Baggett does.
“My point was to send a message, and I think the message was well-received,” Trainer said. “I’m hoping that everything will improve greatly as it relates to the actual environment of the atmosphere.”
Commercial ordinances
The county also is looking into creating commercial zoning.
After Fire Coordinator Patrick Warner told the board about a situation recently when fire trucks could not get around construction from a new commercial project on Oktoc Road, he advised the board to begin considering a commercial building ordinance, something the county does not have.
“I think it’s time, as the county is growing, not a residential, but a commercial building ordinance on big property,” Warner said. “… For the safety of the people in the county and for us as volunteers responding, I think we need to look at some commercial zoning.”
The city of Starkville has several ordinances regarding buildings, residential and commercial, but the county does not have any codes in place. The board discussed several large projects over the last decade, such as all of the apartment complexes on Blackjack Road, that have caused problems for the county and been harsh on county roads.
The board asked for Board Attorney Rob Roberson to look into this situation and figure out the best possible ways to draft an ordinance.
District 1 Supervisor John Montgomery said he agrees that commercial buildings need to be zoned, but does not want residential buildings to be affected.
“I think we’re making a grave mistake when somebody is wanting to build a shop beside their house and they’re going to have to get building permits,” Montgomery said. “This is why people move out of the city and into the county.”
Roberson said he does not plan on the county enacting any type of code within the next six months, but he said he and the board will begin the research process in the near future.
“This is going to become a problem more and more as we have growth throughout the county,” Roberson said.
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