BY TRACY LEE TATE
Special to the Times
What started out to be a public hearing on the Union County Preliminary Budget, followed by the regular Board of County Commission meeting, turned into a marathon diatribe by county employees and citizens against County Coordinator Jimmy Williams.
The public hearing started at 5:05 p.m. There were 50 or more citizens present from the start of the meeting and loud complaints began almost immediately for the lack of seating and problems with the sound system. All the seats were full and a number of people were standing out in the hallway outside the room. As the rude comments got louder and more frequent, Board Chair Ryan Perez repeatedly asked everyone to calm down and conduct themselves better but was shouted down and the complaints grew louder.
Only after Perez threatened to ask the deputy present to remove those causing the disturbance did things begin to settle down, with some still complaining that the meeting room was too small. It was suggested that the meeting be moved upstairs to one of the courtrooms. It was not legal, under Florida Sunshine Laws, to move the meeting to another area as it had been advertised as to be held in the commission meeting room, but Perez promised citizens that arrangements would be made before the next meeting for a larger venue.
Proposed Millage
The proposed millage rate for the 2023-24 fiscal year was announced to be 10.0 mills. This is a 6.09% increase over last year (2022-23), with the roll-back rate at 9.4257 mills. After the proposed millage was announced the floor was opened up for public comments.
More awareness of finances needed
Avery Roberts came forward to give his views. He said he hoped the board was looking forward to predict and anticipate what the future would bring. He said he had not been keeping up with the county finances as well as he would wish and asked if it would be possible to get a historical view of county finances, which Clerk of Court and Comptroller Kellie Hendricks Rhoades said she could provide. After telling Rhoades what he would like to have, Roberts continued with his comments.
Roberts said that the county was going to need additional income sources for the community and he suggested holding public workshops.
“The people need to become more aware and accurate in their understanding of county finances,” Roberts said. “The future of this county is not just one person’s vision, but needs to include others. We need smart growth and more services for young people here and these things need to be planned for as much as possible.”
Roberts said one critical need in the community is for a code enforcement officer. He also commented on a 5-cent per gallon gas tax that was being proposed, saying gas tax revenue was “low hanging fruit” – an easy way for the county to raise revenues. He then complimented and thanked the commissioners for their work and service to the county and singled out Williams for recognition for the “dogged” work he had done to get the county Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) funds to compensate for the loss in ad valorem taxes on prison housing in the county.
“We need more thinking outside the box like that to help us find more revenue and other assistance for the county,” Roberts said.
With no other citizens wishing to comment on the proposed millage rate, motion was made by Commissioner Jimmy Tallman, and seconded by Commissioner Willie Croft to approve the tentative millage rate and the motion passed the board unanimously.
Pay hike request withdrawn
The hearing then moved on to consideration of the tentative budget. Williams started the discussion by withdrawing his request for a pay raise, saying the matter could be dealt with later and suggesting that a public workshop be held on the matter.
Rhoades suggested a change which would allow two vehicles needed by the Solid Waste Department – a roll-off truck and a truck for animal control. These had not yet been included in the budget, but she said they could be paid four out of the general fund special account, where the remaining ARPA money was kept.
Both Perez and Commissioner Mac Johns asked that the pay rate for two employees be checked to make sure they had gotten what they were supposed to receive then the other employees received “compression” raises to conform to the upcoming $15/hr. minimum wage. Tallman agreed that code enforcement was critical and that he wanted to have meetings about it soon. He said the position needed a place in the budget. Rhoades told the board that there was $75,000 in the contingency fund that could be used to fund the position. After these few changes were proposed to the tentative budget, the floor was opened up once again for public comments.
Pay raise for coordinator opposed
Lindsey Reddish was first to the podium, saying she was opposed to a raise for Williams and from comments made at a meeting four months ago had assumed the matter was off the table. It seems that at that time Williams assumed the responsibility for the Land Development Regulations and was told there would be no increase in pay. Commissioner Channing Dobbs confirmed this, saying that the duty had been handled in the past by the board chairman, but that Williams had already taken on much of the duty anyway, so he was made the LDR Administrator.
Courtney Douglas then came up to speak, saying she was seeing a great deal of confusion concerning the LDR position. She said she agreed with the idea of a public meeting to discuss a raise for Williams. She also said that she was concerned with the board’s understanding of the grant process. She said she had written and awarded grants and that none of the process was the work of one person. She said the board gave all of the credit to Williams, when it was not possible that he had done it all alone. She said she wants the board to focus on team action rather than just praising one person for getting the grant.
The tentative budget was approved by the board 3-2, with Tallman and Croft casting the dissenting votes, both saying that they had not had the time to read the entire document. There will be another public hearing on the budget on Monday, Sept. 25 at 5 p.m., with the location to be announced. The public hearing was then closed and, after a 15 min. break, the regular monthly meeting was called to order.
Zoning change request
During the public comments portion of the meeting Avery Roberts returned to speak to the board. He said there was a project coming up that would require a zoning change for the property located at the intersection of CR-121 and CR-231. The proposed building would house a parts house and he said he did not see any problem with it.
“It’s not a good place for a residence and the property was commercial and was home to a bar before the LDRs and land use regulations were changed,” Roberts said. “Many people are against it but I don’t see any problem. One thing that does need to be addressed, however, are the rumors about that area being annexed into the city or that the zoning of the adjacent properties would also be changed.”
Roberts was followed by Tom Jenkins, owner of the property. He asked for a waiver on the $1,500 fee for the rezoning as the use of the property would be retail and therefore bring revenue into the community. He said that while he owns the property, he would be renting it (with a 5-year lease) to the parties who wanted to open the business. Tallman responded that it would be best to see how the re-zoning issue went first and Perez added, “Let’s do it the right way.”
Providence RV park
Jed Douglas then came forward to speak on behalf of the week-old Providence Advisory Committee concerning the location of an RV Park there. He said that no one in the community wanted it there and no one considered it to be positive growth. He said that on March 18, 2019 the board, on a motion by then commissioner Lacey Cannon, to grant the landowner a special exception.
“Due process was not followed by the owner of the property or the commission,” Douglas said. “There was no due diligence about the exception.”
Both Williams and Perez suggested sending the matter to attorney David Therique, who helped the county with some legal issues concerning the proposed phosphate mining. Therique is a specialist in land use law and could assist the county in dealing with the situation.
Gas tax opposed
Michael Snyder spoke to the board in opposition to the proposed gas tax. He asked who in the audience had not had to dramatically tighten their belts in the past few years due to the economy. He questioned raising the price of gas and asked the board not to approve the tax. Commissioner Channing Dobbs said the tax would take advantage of travelers coming through the county and help offset the huge increase in the cost of running the road department. He said he would rather see the money being raised through the tax rather than through the tax rolls. Perez added that the county needed to see the reality it was sitting in – prices are going up and revenue is going nowhere.
Lindsey Reddish came to the podium again, asking about the rezoning of the property being postponed twice and wanting to know what oversight the board had on Williams. She said that she had information that Williams had waived the fee for Jenkins, which Williams denied. She also asked about the firm recently hired by the board as a “liaison.” Perez informed her that it was not a liaison but a firm that audits processes to increase efficiency and commissioner understanding of the county’s financial dealings. Reddish questioned the expenditure of $2,000 per month for this service and was told that it would not be a permanent thing and that $2,000 was the maximum charge, not the regular charge for services.
Courtney Snyder then spoke to the board about family costs and what a hardship the proposed increase in the gas tax would cause many families.
Courtney Douglas asked the board to set a workshop on policies and procedures and the board did so, setting the workshop for Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2023 at 6 p.m.
‘We are not a lunch mob’
Peggy Gatlin then spoke to the board, saying that she was making a complaint about it being a hostile workplace. Gatlin works in the Clerk of Court’s office. She said Jimmy Williams frequently ignored policies and procedures and exhibited misconduct in failing to follow established protocols and that she had seen no action from the board. She also complained about a recent emergency meeting where Tallman spoke disrespectfully to her. Tallman responded that the meeting was called as an emergency measure and that he was truly sorry if he had offended her. The meeting was called because a critical bill had not been paid.
Tallman made comments to the effect that many of the people speaking were a lynch mob and said to Williams, “I don’t know why you stay. I would have left a long time ago.” He was answered by Lindsey Reddish, who said, “You say you want public involvement – we are not a lynch mob.”
Public comments closed, the board went on to conduct routine business and, in the process tabled the gas tax issue until next January. Johns suggested considering a lower amount, .02 cents, and that will be brought into the discussion when the matter is revisited.
