What appeared to be a sticking point with recent re-districting in the county has been resolved by the Attorney General’s office, according to information given at the January 18 meeting of the Simpson County Board of Supervisors.
School board member Stacey Herring, who represents District 1, fell victim to the recent change of district lines, or so it was thought. She ran and was elected to serve another six-year term in District 1 last year before the redistricting had occurred.
With new district lines being approved for upcoming elections, Herring’s address is being moved out of District 1 and into District 2. However, an opinion from the AG allows her to serve out the term she was elected to. This was also confirmed through the Secretary of State’s Office.
Board Attorney Danny Welch informed the board that the only issue now would be coordinating with David Wade of the Central Mississippi Planning and Development District, which served as the agency to establish new lines for supervisory and justice court districts.
The board took under advisement the bids for six new dump trucks for the county. The issue is expected to resurface on January 26 at 8 a.m., at a special called meeting. Two vendors submitted bids, Truck Works for $196,000 each and Burroughs Company for $177,500 each. A buy- back amount after one year is associated with each bid. Road Manager Ben Warren reported that the department was preparing for inclement weather later in the week.
Jason Berry addressed the board about a property located near his residence on Dewitt Flynt Road that he says appears to have turned into a trailer park with campers instead of trailers. He reported that raw sewerage was pouring out from campers and that all the campers were hooked to one power source provided from the permanent residence on the property.
The board informed Berry that no restrictions in the county dictated use of private property but that a committee is in place to make a recommendation to the board regarding land use in the county.
Welch said the only recourse at present is to present complaints to the State Health Department regarding sewerage and to the power company regarding more than one resident utilizing power at a single family dwelling.
Berry said he planned to make those contacts.
The board heard from Debris Tech representatives Cindy Carter and Debra McCormick. They would like to contract with the county to offer services relating to storm damage and other natural disasters. The county would not contract with them until their services were utilized.
John Kilpatrick informed the board that the county had filed for and qualified for $58,770 through FEMA, Federal Emergency Management Agency. He told the board they would likely qualify for larger amounts using services offered through Debris Tech.
Kilpatrick reported that since the board had adopted a permitting fee in April his office has received $32,650 from fees for the building of homes, placement of mobile homes and the location of a cellular tower.
For the time period between November 15 and December 14, 2021, a total of 1,199 E-911 calls were placed. A total of 16,234 calls were placed last year. Between December 15 and January 15, nine structure fires were reported. Kilpatrick called that “a low figure,” which he attributed to the warmer weather.
From November 15 through December 15, 240 dispatched ambulance calls were made with the average response time of just under 15 minutes.
There was a motion to bury a dead horse belonging to Marilyn Wells. The board voted to approve the action. In the past this practice had usually been done over the objection of District 2 Supervisor Danny Craft. He has stated in the past that he felt the owner had a responsibility to tend to their own livestock unless it was an emergency. Craft said, “I have beaten a dead horse to death on this.” This is the second time he has voted to approve the burial of livestock.
The board approved the increase in cost of meals provided to county inmates because of the shortage of food associated with the pandemic.
Complaints have been issued to supervisors regarding the garbage being generated at the parking lots at Howard’s Industries, which is then being blown into Highway 49. The board instructed Welch to draft a letter requesting assistance with the issue.
The next meeting of the board is set for January 26.
The board approved hiring Chad O’Quinn as a full time deputy in the Sheriff’s Department. The sheriff presented a quote in the amount of $30,856.25 for the standardization of radio equipment through Motorola and Jackson Communications. This is being paid through fines and fees of agencies like law enforcement.
