The Lowndes County Board of Supervisors briefly spoke about a recently-completed parks and recreation study after a citizen raised concerns in Wednesday’s meeting at the courthouse.
Berry Hinds, a Columbus resident, told supervisors he reviewed the nine-page report released publicly last week and is worried the county may move forward on a decision without citizen involvement.
“I’m here to encourage you to get input from the public,” Hinds said. “Forty percent of your constituents live inside the city limits of Columbus. I can only speak for one of those constituents — that’s me — but I feel like you’d be making a mistake (to) cut out forty percent completely from recreation funds inside the city.
“I think that’s a mistake, and I think you should see what your constituents have to say — have some public meetings around the city, the county, maybe combine them,” Hinds added.
The county hired Clinton-based RF Outdoor Consulting, LLC in June to conduct a review of the facilities and operations of the Columbus-Lowndes Recreation Authority. The county paid $4,000 for the study and received the report in mid-August.
CLRA operates under an inter-local agreement between Columbus and Lowndes County, and receives the vast majority of its funding from the two entities.
The study has sparked fears in the city that the county intends to withdraw from the inter-local agreement.
While the study doesn’t make any specific recommendations as to whether the county should withdraw from the inter-local agreement, the final page of the report offers suggestions on what the county might need to consider if it wants to create its own parks system.
The inter-local parks agreement requires a one-year notice period should any party choose to withdraw.
District 5 Supervisor Leroy Brooks said a decision on what, if anything, the county should do is still pending.
“There has been no formal decision made by this board regarding what’s going to happen to parks and recreation,” Brooks said. “I think that misnomer may be out there. I’m sure that at some point, when some decision is made, it will be discussed in the public.”
The board took no action on the matter.
Mayor’s statements
Columbus Mayor Robert Smith issued updated statements about the parks study earlier in the week.
In the summer, Smith offered an alarmed response to the proposed study, saying he believed it was the county’s first step toward ending the partnership that maintains CLRA. He said he feared it would ultimately lead to “recreation segregation,” and has since told The Dispatch he maintains that stance.
The city offered, without success, to join the county in the hiring process and hold public interviews for consultants to review parks.
Smith said he’s still open to meetings with the county to discuss the issue, but he believes “three supervisors” have already reached their decision.
Board President Harry Sanders, District 2 Supervisor Bill Brigham and District 3 Supervisor John Holliman voted for the study in June, while District 4 Supervisor Jeff Smith and Brooks opposed it.
“Unfortunately, I believe the members of the Board of Supervisors have conferred with each other again and the majority have their minds made up,” Smith said in a written statement released Tuesday. “If I am right, they will begin dismantling the Recreation Authority without regard to the wishes of the residents of the city, all of whom are county voters and residents. I certainly hope they prove me wrong.”
Smith also said the consultants did not contact the city during the study, though supervisors indicated that would likely happen when they hired the firm in June. The study only notes meeting with CLRA Director Greg Lewis.
“I had hoped that this study would involve the city,” Smith said. “After all, the city is a partner in the Recreation Authority. Regardless of this partnership, the authors of the study failed to seek input from the city in any way, at any time.”
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
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.
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.
