The Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors and the Starkville Board of Aldermen are finding new ways to create a partnership between the two entities.
Any time both the county and city want to coordinate with each other for a project or program, they typically enter an interlocal agreement. At a joint work session Friday, the boards agreed they wanted to find an easier way to conduct business.
Board of Aldermen Attorney Chris Latimer said instead of entering interlocal agreements on every project, a process that can take extensive time, the boards can simply create a board order, both deciding to enter into whatever work is at hand.
“It’s a partnership,” Latimer said. “It’s each documented on the other entities’ minutes. You’re each independently governed, but you’re working together.”
Board of Supervisors Attorney Rob Roberson, who also serves as a state representative, said the boards can potentially enter local and private legislation in the future with the approval of the state legislature. He suggested spreading agreements over the minutes of each board is the most appropriate for the time being.
Oktibbeha County District 2 Supervisor Orlando Trainer said he believes the most effective way to get projects done would be for the city and county to consolidate their governments, specifically joining road departments. He said with more minds thinking in unison, the merged entities could obtain contractors easily and get more “bang for your buck.”
“If we want to reach our full potential, we really need to look at that,” Trainer said.
Starkville Ward 2 Alderman Sandra Sistrunk mentioned that the counties along the Mississippi Gulf Coast have an interlocal agreement to work with each other on projects pertaining to the beach and coastal areas. She cited that Memphis and Shelby County discussed consolidating their governments as well, but eventually opted out because the residents felt it would be more of a disadvantage than advantage.
“Everyone thinks that when you consolidate the governments, it’s going to be more efficient and economical,” Sistrunk said. “It’s rarely the case that it turns out that it costs less.”
Road improvements
The main projects discussed Friday pertained to roads in the county that fell within city limits.
The city received $1,250,000 for an extension of Hospital and Stark Roads from the Mississippi legislature in 2021, which must be spent within the next three years. These funds do not cover overlaying Hospital Road though, something Mayor Lynn Spruill suggested the city work with the county on because OCH Regional Medical Center on Hospital Road is used by all Oktibbeha County residents.
She proposed the city and county split the cost evenly, something both entities indicated they would discuss in the future.
Roberson said he plans to ask the legislature for funding for overlaying Hospital Road during the 2023 legislative session. He suggested both boards continue to have conversions in the coming months about which roads and projects were priorities, and he would lobby for those funds.
“My hope when we go back next year… is for us to get a plan together of some of the things that the county is doing, some of the things the city is doing,” Roberson said. “We go in together and say, ‘These are some of the important things that we want to do,’ and also get that money for the overlay for Hospital Road.”
Oktibbeha County District 4 Supervisor Bricklee Miller, who serves as county board president, pointed out that although the county is a unit system, it splits its funds evenly among its five districts. She said Starkville should figure out which roads it would like to partner with the county on, and the supervisor who oversees that particular road would have to decide if they want to allocate funds for it, placing it into the county’s four-year road plan.
“We would need to know if there are specific things per district,” Miller said. “We would need to have discussions with that supervisor and whoever the alderman is for that area and take it back to the board.”
Trash pickup
The annexation of county areas, including areas northeast of Mississippi State University and Highway 82, as well as south of Highway 182, including Clayton Village and University Hills, into city limits officially went into effect on Thursday after a two-year long court case.
Because these areas now fall within city limits, Spruill said she and the sanitation department are working to inform residents about the changes pertaining to trash pickup. Oktibbeha County uses trash bins for pickup, while the city has a garbage bag distribution program in which residents leave garbage bags outside for pickup.
While the county only charges $13 per month for sanitation fees, the city charges $17.50 per month, but this includes twice weekly pickup rather than once a week in the county, and also includes rubbish collection.
“I fully expect to have many conversations (about trash pickup),” Spruill said.
Roberson mentioned he wanted to ensure newly annexed residents would not be charged twice for trash pickup. Spruill said she is working with Golden Triangle Waste Services to prevent this from happening. Trainer said he would like to see trash cans of these residents remain in place until further education on the annexation has occurred.
“Due to the nature of those areas not having as much activity, I would think that it would probably be good for the city until (Starkville) can get things together, to leave those cans there,” Trainer said.
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