Three months into his role as manager for the Caledonia Water Department, Brad Box confesses he still has some things to learn — which, he said, is one of the biggest appeals of the job.
Box, who left his job as manager at the Caledonia Gas District after 19 years to take over as the town’s water department manager, admitted he’s learning as he goes in his new role.
“I love leaning stuff,” said Box, 40, a Caledonia native. “It had gotten to the point at the gas district that after 19 years I wasn’t leaning much anymore. So when this job came open, I said to myself, ‘Hey. Here’s a challenge and I love a challenge.’ Every day, I’m learning something and I think I’m getting to the point where I have a pretty good handle on things.”
Box replaced Barrett Baggett, who was fired by the Caledonia Board of Aldermen in September under a cloud of suspicion. The state auditor’s office is currently investigating the department’s practices under Barrett.
Mayor Mitch Wiggins said he could not comment on the situation, due to the investigation.
In choosing Box, who has brought in his own staff of two (with another hire pending), the aldermen chose potential over experience.
Box is currently preparing for the licensing state for certification while serving a mandated apprenticeship period under the direction of Grant Mitchell, manager of the East Lowndes Water Association.
Box’s wage is $31 an hour, which translates into roughly $64,000 a year.
What Box lacked in credentials, he made up for in reputation.
“Since he was at Caledonia Gas, a lot of our board members knew Brad,” Wiggins said. “What everybody knew about him was what a hard worker he was. It was almost like he was from that older generation, a guy who just works his tail off and gets the job done. We felt that was the kind of person we needed to get everything back on track.”
His mud-flecked jeans and work boots testified to that work ethic as he sat in his office Thursday.
“I think the board knows I’m not just going to sit here and push a pencil,” Box said. “I’m getting out in the field and working every day. That’s the best way to learn. I’m really fortunate to have Grant Mitchell guide me. That’s really helped.”
Box said he and his two field technicians have been concentrating heavily on repairs to the water system and upgrading outdated equipment.
“Everything we do, in the long run, is going to save money,” he said. “When we go out to repair to a leak, we take a look at everything. If there’s a valve that’s old or outdated, we’ll replace it then and there. Our goal is to make sure our water system is efficient.”
Upon his arrival, Box discovered one of the city’s water plants was operating at about half its capacity.
“It was supposed to produce 250 gallons per minute, but it was only doing 130 gallons,” he said. “So that was one of the first things we did. It took about two months, but it’s back to full capacity now.”
The city’s water system produced about 360,000 gallons per day for its 2,200 customers, Box said.
Aside from keeping the water running, the biggest goal for the department is water quality.
“That’s my No. 1 goal,” he said. “The water in Lowndes County has a lot of iron in it. The iron is what causes brown water. So we do a lot of backwashing to remove the iron and we test the water twice a day. We’re making sure we get that iron out of the water because that’s the biggest issue for the water here.”
Wiggins said he’s been impressed with how quickly Box has taken to the job.
“I was talking to Grant Mitchell and he said he was very impressed with how fast Brad is learning everything,” Wiggins said. “We really owe a lot to Grant and his water department because their help really made hiring Brad an option for us. As for Brad, we just couldn’t be happier with how things are working out. I can’t brag enough about the job he’s doing. “
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.