Three members of the Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau board will form a committee to review CEO Nancy Carpenter’s expiring contract.
The full CVB board voted Tuesday to appoint Jay Patel, Matt Bogue and Quinn Brislin to a review committee.
Carpenter’s current one-year contract expires Sept. 30. The committee will present findings and any recommended changes to the contract terms to the board Sept. 12. The board will meet Sept. 19 to consider renewing the contract.
In September 2022, Carpenter signed a one-year contract with the board to oversee operations of both the CVB and its affiliated nonprofit, the Columbus Cultural Heritage Foundation, in a combined role as chief executive officer. Her pay is $110,556 for this fiscal year.
She had previously worked under a three-year contract with separate salaries to direct each organization that combined for $121,785.
Board President Liz Terry said during the meeting she had met with Bogue, Brislin and Patel separately to discuss the idea for a committee and all three agreed.
“This is not at all about making any decisions on anything other than looking at the contract as it currently is and to see if there are things in there that need to be deleted, edited, improved upon, whatever,” Terry said.
Terry told The Dispatch the board formed the committee to streamline the contract renewal process when the board votes on a new one on Sept. 19, along with a new FY 2024 budget.
“I think that it will make (voting on a new contract) less time-consuming because whatever the committee comes up with, it will be presented to the board for consideration and approval,” Terry said.
Board votes to table ARPA consultant
The board also voted to table a proposal to hire an attorney to assist with spending $591,925 in American Rescue Plan Act funds from the Mississippi Department of Finance Administration.
At special-call meeting, the board discussed spending ARPA funds on marketing and advertising over the next two fiscal years and using 2% tourism sales tax money to pay off $374,414 in outstanding debt. The board will vote on whether to adopt that plan in September.
Carpenter and attorney John Brady proposed the board hire Brian Smith of Jackson-based Watkins and Eager to serve as a consultant to ensure legal ARPA spending.
“Having someone like Brian Smith at the board’s disposal in case there are specific questions that come up about ARPA money, that would be a good person and a good law firm to have,” Brady said.
Brislin moved to table the proposal until the Sept. 19 meeting so that board members can review any ARPA procurement and purchasing laws. That way, he said, the CVB can avoid overusing an attorney who is billing by the hour.
“I’m concerned that without specific policy and procedures in writing and being followed by us, that if we entertain (hiring an attorney) right now, then it just leaves the doors wide open (for overusing that professional service),” Brislin said. “I don’t want to see professionals doing the job we should already be doing in-house.”
Brislin also questioned whether the board had ever ceremoniously adopted any ARPA spending policies and procedures, but no board member was sure at the time if they had been. Brady told The Dispatch Wednesday that the board adopted them in July 2022.
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