BY TRACY LEE TATE
Special to the Times
During a special meeting on Monday, March 25, the Union County Board of County Commissioners voted 4-1 to cancel County Coordinator Jimmy Williams’s suspension with pay and reinstate him to his position.
This decision was made after a two-hour meeting in which the report generated by the county labor attorneys was heard, comments from Williams’ attorney were heard, and the commission discussed the matter among themselves as well.
Public criticizes board
As has been usual in all meetings discussing Williams, the meeting began with public comments on the issue.
Paulette Davidson spoke first, stating that she was not happy that the commission had not already discharged Williams. She then proceeded to tell the board about all the things she had been hearing about the matter, including that the board members had already made a decision before the meeting. She said that Williams was “not a man that I would like to say works for the county.” She also questioned the reduction of time allowed for each citizen to give their comments from five to three minutes. She also accused the board of being disorganized because they were having so many meetings recently.
Asher Sullivan complained about the labor attorney’s report, which criticized the previous report on the matter done by the State Attorney’s office. He also expressed his displeasure that the board would not allow him to bring his attorney with him to speak at a meeting.
Local businessman Bart Andrews told the board that “if Jimmy Williams is not fired, then they all should be.” He said the board was not accountable and mentioned projects where he had been the lowest bidder but had not been selected. Board Chairman Channing Dobbs called Andrews down several times about the strong language he was using in his comments and was told by Andrews not to “lecture me like you are my daddy.” His inappropriate language continued after this, punctuated by applause from several members of the audience, but he was soon asked to leave the podium by Dobbs because of it.
Former District 4 Commissioner Lacey Cannon told the board that on the day he lost his bid for reelection, he told Williams to resign as “the new commissioner and the clerk were out to get rid of him.” He said that “the county has suffered from his (Williams’) suspension, citing work on the courthouse grant falling behind in the required deadlines and grant opportunities being missed. He was heckled by members of the audience while he was speaking.
Williams’s lawyer: we fully cooperated
Time was then given to Williams’ attorney, Paul Hawkes, to speak in his client’s defense. He told the board members that he and Williams had cooperated with the most recent investigation, as they had with the one done by the State Attorney’s office. He said that he had determined that most of the attacks on Williams had come from county employees. He then asked the board members if they had any questions.
Commissioner Donna Jackson asked Hawkes if Williams had enclosed the back porch on the house he was building if he had reported the changes in the plans to the building department (as it would change the energy figures for the project), and what type of power pole was installed in March of last year. Williams spoke up and answered her questions, saying that the changes to the plans were not yet reported but that it was within the regulations not to do so yet. He also clarified that the power pole installed on the property was a temporary pole, as is used in construction.
Labor law firm reports
The investigator for Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, the firm that serves Union County as labor attorneys, came to the podium to speak to the board about his report.
Colin Thakkar said he approached the investigation from the standpoint of investigating the allegations of workplace misconduct – did Williams gain any improper benefit from his position as county coordinator, and did he try and cover up any violations? He gave a brief timeline of the situation, stating that Williams did email the plans for his project to the building department in Oct. 2022. Throughout the time after, Thakkar said that his review of the records showed that Williams was not treated any differently than any other contractor by the building department and could find no evidence of any attempts to cover up misconduct by Williams.
Thakkar said his conclusion was based on the evidence that Williams had not abused his position with the county and that there was insufficient evidence to support the allegation that Williams received any favorable treatment. He stated that any member of the general public would receive the same under similar circumstances. He also stated that there was no evidence that Williams made any attempt to conceal the alleged violations.
Thakkar also reported the sources used in his investigation, which included materials collected by the State Attorney’s office in their investigation and additional sources not accessed in that first report, such as the email records and files pertaining to the already reported problems with permit numbering.
Johns: board is covering up for Williams
When Thakkar opened up for questions from the commissioners about the report, Commissioner Mac Johns asked Thakkar if his firm had worked for the county in the past and, when answered in the affirmative, stating that the firm was actually hired by the county and was,, therefore, a subsidiary of the county. He said that Williams was more than a citizen or a builder from Union County. He said he felt that the opinions expressed in the report were based on Williams’ intentions, not his actions.
“I see this as an internal investigation,” Johns said. “I feel that the state attorney was unbiased, and it is unheard of to find fault with a state attorney’s report. It looks like the county went after a report that said what they wanted it to say. I think that this report lacks credibility and merit. If the board makes a decision based on this investigation, it looks like the board is trying to cover up something.”
“When I first approached this investigation, I was not aware of any side I could take that would be good for business,” Thakkar responded. “I knew that the report, however it came out, would not please everyone. I worked hard to come to conclusions that I believed to be true.”
Commissioners respond
Jackson then spoke to Thakkar.
“I thought that this investigation would review all of the evidence, which was done,” Jackson said. “I expected and wanted that due to our responsibility to provide transparency. This report addresses two issues, legal violations of building laws and any special treatment towards Jimmy Williams and any benefit he derived. I have read both reports, laid side by side, and found that in some areas, they agree, and in some areas, they disagree. I disagree with the assumption that no one was asked to cover up some aspects of this situation. I see some of the conclusions reached differ between the two reports, likely due to different information, such as the IT material.”
Jackson went on to say that if Williams were retained, she would like to see that he had no authority over the building department, be made to pay a fine, and make sure that his payment of a special assessment on the property was proven.
Dobbs said he thought that people looking at the situation were not seeing the situation but either just citizens or a county coordinator. He said that in this situation, Williams was no different than any building contractor. He said that if the board voted to retain Williams, he would like to see a stipulation that Williams could not build any more projects in Union County and that any Land Development Regulation (LDR) matters he handled by County Attorney Russ Wade.
Jimmy Tallman said the State Attorney’s report had stated that the findings had been submitted to the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), with Williams confirming that he had received notice of their investigation of the matter. He said they could fine Williams if he was found to be in violation and questioned whether the county could also require Williams to pay a fine. Wade said it was not under the authority to fine Williams but could make it a condition of continued employment.
Commissioner Willie Croft asked how the county could prohibit Williams from building in the county and Jackson told him the situation was already covered in the employee regulations.
Union County Tax Collector Lisa Johnson asked to speak and came to the podium, saying she was speaking as the tax collector, not as a private citizen. She said the whole situation was unethical and wrong, and that is what people have been commenting on.
“This has been going on for a long time,” Johnson said. “Jimmy Williams should have pre-paid the special assessment but did not – he did, however, have the property put on the tax rolls. He seems to be someone who doesn’t follow the rules but makes others follow them. This whole thing is one big pie, and no one has all the pieces. It is hard to judge a situation when you cannot see all of it.”
Johns said he cannot trust or work with Williams, and he felt it would be to the benefit of the county to move on without him. He said they were once good friends and referenced the often-mentioned “feud” with Clerk of Court Kellie Rhoades. He said he felt the only way to deal with the situation and made a motion to terminate Williams. The motion died without a second.
Commissioner Jimmy Tallman said that many people had strong opinions, and this matter had confirmed his decision not to run again. He said that he felt Williams had provided what he was hired to do and that he felt the county needed to keep Williams so the county could move forward.
Johns said, speaking to Tallman, that they could never talk about things, and that was a handicap. He also said that Williams got a number of grants, but after the work was done, the ball fields were still not usable because they lacked lights and still needed work.
Tallman said Johns had been calling to terminate Williams since before the building issue came up. He said the county needed someone to sit at a desk and find grants.
“The commissioners just don’t have time,” Tallman said. “Some of us are business owners, and others work full time. We need someone working for the county’s benefit full time.”
Johns said he had no hard feelings.
“I make my own decisions, and no one influences my decisions,” Johns said. “It is time to make a decision on this and get it over with. I will work with him if I have to for the good of the county. I must do what is best for the county.”
Jackson made a motion for the board to decide to bar Williams from working as a contractor in Union County as a condition of employment (as per the personnel policy) and to rescind any previous permissions to do so, and the motion passed the board unanimously. She then went on to require that the house Williams currently has under construction be prohibited from any more work until the energy survey update is put on file with the building department, the taxes are paid, and Williams hires an engineer to certify that the building is an accurate and true reflection of the plans. This motion also passed the board 5-0.
Tallman moved to return Williams to work, revoking his suspension. The motion passed 4-1, with Johns casting the dissenting vote.
Jackson had one final admonishment to Williams.
“One final thing,” Jackson said. “Your employment here is a matter of trust for the commission. A lot of problems can be avoided with communication. I expect you to follow every rule of the county, and I will address the report from the BDPR when it comes out.”
Before the meeting was adjourned, Wade told the commission that he would be happy to give recommendations on LDR issues, as he has been during Williams’s suspension, but he felt it would be a possible conflict for him to make decisions because the LDR administrator was also the code enforcement official. The board agreed to discuss the code enforcement issue at another meeting and work to remove the conflict.
