One of the big pieces of news to come from the Board of Supervisors meeting last week is the fact that Dollar General will be opening a store in Pinola.
That will mean no more long trips to get everyday essentials for the people who live in the western part of the county. No word as of yet as to the official opening date but they don’t take long once they get started.
The board accepted three bids on the Cato Road Project. The bids were from T. L. Wallace, RJM McQueen Construction and Dickerson and Bowen. The lowest and best bid from RJM at $245,061.65 was slightly higher than the engineer’s estimate, but the state approved the bid since it was only 1 percent above the estimate which was actually 11 percent, but 10 percent is the allowable variance.
County Engineer Buddy Wolverton reported that the annual bridge inspection is about to be conducted. Normally, when this is done supervisors and the engineer along with the road manager and the inspector go around to survey needs. That is not the case this year because of the pandemic. The inspector has been doing it by himself in some situations.
There will be another bid opening at the chancery court room for Mt. Zion to Shivers Road on June 22 at 9 a.m.
Road Manager Ben Warren reported to the board that the road crew had done a test run on tarring and rocking roads last week. The plan is to start in the southwest corner of the county and work toward Magee, then north to Martinville and complete work in the northwest corner of the county near Harrisville. The county is currently stockpiling gravel for the projects around the county.
John Kilpatrick, emergency management coordinator, reported that virus cases have stabilized statewide but if a hotspot develops the state might still do targeted closures. There will be one more distribution of personal protective equipment and then the county will start accumulating for future outbreaks which have been predicted later in the year. Elections were mentioned but no plans have been made.
The board acknowledged the death in the line of duty for Deputy James Blair. The service that was held at the Region VIII facility on Monday along with funeral services were mentioned. The board observed time of silence to acknowledge his loss.
Recognition was given to Deputy James Moorehead for twenty years of service to the county as a law enforcement officer for Simpson County Sheriff’s Department. They also acknowledged his many accomplishments to include military service.
The board approved the acceptance of a new bloodhound pup, Chester Silas which was donated by Bobby Chester. The dog is going to be used to track rather than narcotics. Sheriff Mullins said this will be a better situation in the event of a child who come up missing. Mullins said the training would come from Rankin County so there would be little cost involved with the dog. The board approved the donation of Chester Silas. They also approved the acceptance of body armor from Covington County for the K-9, Mocha.
The board approved the county administrator, Rhuel Dickinson applying for a grant to hire three temporary people to clean county facilities following the pandemic. These positions will be funded though other agencies not the county.
The next regular meeting of the board is set for Monday, July 6. The county will observe Friday, July 3 as a holiday in conjunction with the state.
The board went into executive session to discuss applicants for the position of technology manager position for the county. The board agreed on the recommendation of the administrator and hired Charlie Welch for the position.
