BY MARK J. CRAWFORD
Telegraph Editor
STARKE — Sheriff Gordon Smith took exception to a number of points in a letter to the editor written by Commissioner Diane Andrews, and he let her know about it publicly during the March 7 commission meeting.
Smith accused her of not gathering the correct information and said she should dig deeper.
“If you don’t, half-truths is what your constituents will believe. When you don’t get all the information, maybe sometimes they think that maybe you’re even lying to them,” he said.
Smith criticized her representation of everything from her take on the property tax rate hike to her failure to meet personally with him or other constitutional officers to understand more about their budgets.
“I don’t think you can fault us for trying to help you, because regular citizens come by our office all the time and ask for input,” he said.
The sheriff counted the unused cameras in the room and turned Andrews request for more public discussion around on the commission, pointing out that thousands of dollars have spent on technology that is not being used to share their meetings with the public.
“Sometimes our citizens that we serve have good information and have good ideas. So who’s hiding? We can turn it on anytime, and everybody in this county can watch what’s going on,” he said. “I’m not hiding. I bring the camera with me. I think everybody will admit that I’m not scared of a camera.”
Smith revisited responsibility for the fire department, how it came to be under his office and then reverted back to the commission. He said with one full-time chief and part-time firefighters, they applied for federal assistance to pay for the staff they already had, not to grow the department, and understood without that revenue, their budget would not grow and they would have to stay the course. That included answering 100% of the calls for fire service. They had a handful of volunteers to help and created a program at North Florida Technical College to certify students.
While Andrews had stated that the sheriff should no longer have a say in the funding of fire rescue, Smith said that his 36 years in public service and 21 years in elected office have given him the insight to chime in. She should rely on all experience offered to set her position, he said.
Smith said he could have written his response in a letter to the paper, but he preferred “two-way communications.”
In spite of his criticisms, he closed by saying he believed commissioners are doing everything possible to work through the county’s financial troubles. The county needs the best fire department it can afford, he said, and firefighters deserve to know their jobs are secure.
Andrews responded later in the meeting, saying she didn’t want an argument with the sheriff, but she found the way he takes over commission meetings “troublesome.” When he jumped in at the franchise fee meeting, she said it resulted in firing up the public, resulting in screaming and yelling.
“You’re personal attacks on me in here, screaming and yelling at me, is just unprofessional,” she said.
“I want to get along with you, I really do. I want to be a good commissioner. I deeply care about the people and want to do a good job.”
Andrews said there is a difference between spending within budget and being a good steward of public money, so everything everyone is spending must be examined.
“This is going to be a difficult time. We’re going to get feelings hurt. People are going to be mad, and I’m sure I’m going to get yelled at, but I just want us to do the right thing for the county,” she said.
Andrews said she believes the county can fund the fire department and more, but everyone is going to have to work together.
You can listen to the discussion at www.BCTelegraph.com.
