A long-simmering feud along racial lines spilled over during the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors meeting Monday during a discussion on whether the county should hire a full time Information Technology specialist.
There has been an impasse among white and black board members after the board voted along racial lines to raise the salary of road manager Ronnie Burns in January. It continued Monday as District 5 Supervisor Leroy Brooks and District 4 Supervisor Jeff Smith, who are black, continued to accuse Board President Harry Sanders, District 2 Supervisor Bill Brigham and District 3 Supervisor John Holliman — all of whom are white — of not including them in the board’s plans.
As supervisors considered taking the responsibility for IT duties from employees in the sheriff’s department and tax collectors office by hiring full-time IT specialist, who would also be responsible for IT tasks in other county offices and its courts, Brooks raised his voice in disagreement.
“If you think you’re not going to get any pushback, that Jeff (Smith) and I are just going to come in here and tap-dance and do whatever you want, well, you’re going to get some pushback,” Brooks said, directing his anger at Sanders, who had suggested the personnel move.
At the board’s meeting on Jan. 15, following the Burns vote, Brooks and Smith abstained from all votes as Brooks read a newspaper during the board meeting and did not participate in any discussions.
While the issue did not emerge in the board’s previous two meetings in February, it seemed to have come to a head Monday. Both Smith and Brooks again complained that the other board members did not inform him and Smith of items they planned to have added to the agenda.
Smith pointed to Burns’ raise, which was not included in the Jan. 4 agenda, but passed during routine appointments made by the supervisors at the start of the new four-year term.
On Monday, Brooks reiterated his belief that the white members of the board discuss items with county administrator Ralph Billingsley and that the decisions are made by virtue of that three-vote majority before the board meetings are held.
“You don’t respect us,” Brooks lashed out Monday. “I understand how democracy works. You have the three votes. I get it. But I think Jeff and I are entitled to be informed of these things before the decisions are made. You just jam things down our throats. Well, black lives matter.”
Brigham objected to Brooks’ assertion that talking with Billingsley about agenda items was improper.
“I go talk to Ralph and you know what? You can, too,” he said.
“I understand that,” Brooks said. “But Ralph can count to three. He wants to keep his job like anybody else.”
Sanders denied any efforts to keep Brooks and Smith out of discussions.
“I’ve been a supervisor for 16 years, (and am) starting my 17th year,” Sanders responded. “Leroy, do you know how many times you have called me? Zero. The phone works from both ends, you know.”
Brooks left the board room soon after the exchange while Smith reiterated his call for more communication.
“All I am saying is that we might have some opinion on these things, too,” Smith said.
Sanders responded that the IT position has been discussed since January and dismissed claims that Brooks was not aware of the goings-on.
“So to say that you weren’t informed, that’s just not right,” Sanders said.
The board ultimately took no action on the IT position after Brooks returned to the meeting.
The board did take some action Monday, approving bids for three projects related to the Steel Dynamics Inc., expansion and opening bids for repairs on two bridges Nashville Ferry Road.
For the Steel Dynamics expansion, the board voted unanimously to award the contract to Perma Corporation of Columbus, which had the low bid of $539,497.50. The board awarded the contract for the rail spur connection to Malouf Construction LLC. of Starkville, with a low bid of $760,444.42. The contract for the road construction went to Phillips Contracting with a low bid of $1,743,874.40
Supervisors opened bids for the bridge work. The low bid came from Tanner Construction with a bid of $1,320,346.50. Supervisors are expected to award that contract at the board’s next meeting on March 7.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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