Last night's board meeting started off like a town hall meeting. For once, citizens were giving the opportunity to address their concerns to the board in a fair and equitable manner. The board listened attentively, but once again, Bobby Gibson, alderman at large, was not receptive to what was being said and tried to hurry the process. It's strange that the person that's supposed to represent the whole city is the one that does not want to hear from the citizens. Perhaps, he should rethink this run for office because if he's not there for the people, then who is he there for. (Will blog more about the things that were discussed during this period in another post.)
The meeting started out on a wrong foot. This was the first meeting with the new city clerk, Merlene Wall, and the first thing I noticed was there was no agendas printed out for the public. The excuse that was given was they were busy and did not have time to run off copies. Again, this goes to the fact that the citizens are an afterthought. At one point, Rachel Jefferson volunteered to use her own money and go out to Ramey's and run off copies. Let's face it, there are not many citizens that attend the board meetings and the fact that there are no agendas printed is an example of non-productivity. We have two clerks in the office. Chief Cowart went into the office and ran off some copies. It took about 5 minutes. So, if someone would have taken one less cigarette break, the whole debacle about no agendas would have been avoided.
The board meeting started as usual. The department heads gave their reports. There were a few citizens that had water bills ranging from $400-521. These individuals generally have bills ranging from $39-45 but no one can explain the sudden spike in the water usage. There was an interesting moment when Chief Cowart was giving her report. Somehow, the report led to questions about a resource officer at the Lumberton Public School. As many of you are aware, there are grants for hiring police officers for school security. Well, the question was asked, has anyone from the school contacted you about a resource officer and Timothy Johnson responded, "that's their issue." I would like to say that I was shocked at his response to school safety, but then again, I'm not. It goes to the notion of making a contribution and making a commitment. I hate to keep rehashing the chicken and the pig analogy, but it's seemingly fitting for this situation. If the farmer wants a bacon and egg breakfast, the chicken will only contribute to the breakfast but the pig must make a commitment in order for the farmer to have breakfast. And that's what's at play here, Tim's comment shows, once again, that he's not committed to this city. It doesn't matter that your children do not attend the school here in Lumberton but the issue of safety should be a concern of everyone, especially those elected to serve.
Now, on to another point, Merlene Wall introduced herself and I must say, she was rather impressive. She has formatted a new system of checks and balances (something the previous clerk adamantly resisted), people that submitted request for paperwork were given the papers they requested (again that's something the previous clerk refused to do) and she has categorized the reports in a more user friendly manner. I must admit, I really did not want to like Merlene Wall. Please note: It was not that I did not think she was a good fit for the job. The reason I didn't want to like her was because of the process, not the person. The board went about the hiring process in a very underhanded manner but that is expected of this board. If the hiring process was equitable, we all would have been stunned. I really didn't think I would get the job, especially with this board in office, but it was reveled that everyone that applied was not given an interview. Again, I was not surprised by this either. For the record, I have put in application after application at the Lumberton Public Library for years and has never been granted an interview. However, those that submitted applications for the city clerk job. Well, let me rephrase that, those that submitted applications that did not vanish, were mailed a letter letting them know that someone had been hired for the position. Merlene has gone through a lot of paperwork and she has managed to get through A-L in the vendors that have not been paid and so far, there's over $33,000 in unpaid claims. I can't imagine how much is going to be owed by the time she completes M-Z. On another note, I must say that I like the professionalism of Merelene Wall. It's refreshing to see a representative of the City of Lumberton dressing professionally. I'm am almost certain that Merlene will not dot the halls of city hall in flip-flops and to that I say, thank you! Also, I must add, that Mayor Holder was looking very regal in her purple attire last night. A lot of citizens were upset with how the board tied her hands and refused to implement a system of checks and balances. But now, she's having to work full weeks in an effort to correct the mess the board created and they have yet to reinstate her salary. She's putting in more than 40 hours a week and getting paid .97/month. That's unacceptable.
In other news, in case you were wondering who was going to certify the election, worry no more. Merlene Wall will be trained in Municipal Election on March 28, 2013 and she will also get her training in BBI on March 18,19, and 20. In case you were wondering, Sue is still not certified. Three years ago, she was given 6 months to complete certification, but she hasn't managed to get any of the training completed. I guess she was too busy. Also, Lindsey Carter wanted to defend the board, I will devote an entire blog post to that matter. On March 23, 2013, Rachel Jefferson will have an Easter Parade. Please contact her about entering the parade. You may enter your float, cars, horses, bikes, etc. The following week, the Lumberton Police Department will host the Day in the Park on March 31, 2013. The board also approved a Fashion Show Fund-Raiser for the KEKE B Foundation. The event will be held at the 5th Avenue School on April 27, 2013.
The board hired Christopher Brumfield as a full-time certified police officer. They promoted Michael Shane Flynt to the position of Lieutenant at the recommendation of Chief Elsie Cowart. They voted to allow Officer Nate Works to attend the SFST (Standardized Field Sobriety Testing) on March 12-14, 2013. The board accepted the one year lease with the Gold Coast Skydivers pending proof of their insurance. The board also approved to have Merlene Wall and Betty Speights approved to become Notary Publics for the City of Lumberton. Bobby Gibson requested his name be added as well. That completes the review of the meeting.
Last night's board meeting started off like a town hall meeting. For once, citizens were giving the opportunity to address their concerns to the board in a fair and equitable manner. The board listened attentively, but once again, Bobby Gibson, alderman at large, was not receptive to what was being said and tried to hurry the process. It's strange that the person that's supposed to represent the whole city is the one that does not want to hear from the citizens. Perhaps, he should rethink this run for office because if he's not there for the people, then who is he there for. (Will blog more about the things that were discussed during this period in another post.)
The meeting started out on a wrong foot. This was the first meeting with the new city clerk, Merlene Wall, and the first thing I noticed was there was no agendas printed out for the public. The excuse that was given was they were busy and did not have time to run off copies. Again, this goes to the fact that the citizens are an afterthought. At one point, Rachel Jefferson volunteered to use her own money and go out to Ramey's and run off copies. Let's face it, there are not many citizens that attend the board meetings and the fact that there are no agendas printed is an example of non-productivity. We have two clerks in the office. Chief Cowart went into the office and ran off some copies. It took about 5 minutes. So, if someone would have taken one less cigarette break, the whole debacle about no agendas would have been avoided.
The board meeting started as usual. The department heads gave their reports. There were a few citizens that had water bills ranging from $400-521. These individuals generally have bills ranging from $39-45 but no one can explain the sudden spike in the water usage. There was an interesting moment when Chief Cowart was giving her report. Somehow, the report led to questions about a resource officer at the Lumberton Public School. As many of you are aware, there are grants for hiring police officers for school security. Well, the question was asked, has anyone from the school contacted you about a resource officer and Timothy Johnson responded, "that's their issue." I would like to say that I was shocked at his response to school safety, but then again, I'm not. It goes to the notion of making a contribution and making a commitment. I hate to keep rehashing the chicken and the pig analogy, but it's seemingly fitting for this situation. If the farmer wants a bacon and egg breakfast, the chicken will only contribute to the breakfast but the pig must make a commitment in order for the farmer to have breakfast. And that's what's at play here, Tim's comment shows, once again, that he's not committed to this city. It doesn't matter that your children do not attend the school here in Lumberton but the issue of safety should be a concern of everyone, especially those elected to serve.
Now, on to another point, Merlene Wall introduced herself and I must say, she was rather impressive. She has formatted a new system of checks and balances (something the previous clerk adamantly resisted), people that submitted request for paperwork were given the papers they requested (again that's something the previous clerk refused to do) and she has categorized the reports in a more user friendly manner. I must admit, I really did not want to like Merlene Wall. Please note: It was not that I did not think she was a good fit for the job. The reason I didn't want to like her was because of the process, not the person. The board went about the hiring process in a very underhanded manner but that is expected of this board. If the hiring process was equitable, we all would have been stunned. I really didn't think I would get the job, especially with this board in office, but it was reveled that everyone that applied was not given an interview. Again, I was not surprised by this either. For the record, I have put in application after application at the Lumberton Public Library for years and has never been granted an interview. However, those that submitted applications for the city clerk job. Well, let me rephrase that, those that submitted applications that did not vanish, were mailed a letter letting them know that someone had been hired for the position. Merlene has gone through a lot of paperwork and she has managed to get through A-L in the vendors that have not been paid and so far, there's over $33,000 in unpaid claims. I can't imagine how much is going to be owed by the time she completes M-Z. On another note, I must say that I like the professionalism of Merelene Wall. It's refreshing to see a representative of the City of Lumberton dressing professionally. I'm am almost certain that Merlene will not dot the halls of city hall in flip-flops and to that I say, thank you! Also, I must add, that Mayor Holder was looking very regal in her purple attire last night. A lot of citizens were upset with how the board tied her hands and refused to implement a system of checks and balances. But now, she's having to work full weeks in an effort to correct the mess the board created and they have yet to reinstate her salary. She's putting in more than 40 hours a week and getting paid .97/month. That's unacceptable.
In other news, in case you were wondering who was going to certify the election, worry no more. Merlene Wall will be trained in Municipal Election on March 28, 2013 and she will also get her training in BBI on March 18,19, and 20. In case you were wondering, Sue is still not certified. Three years ago, she was given 6 months to complete certification, but she hasn't managed to get any of the training completed. I guess she was too busy. Also, Lindsey Carter wanted to defend the board, I will devote an entire blog post to that matter. On March 23, 2013, Rachel Jefferson will have an Easter Parade. Please contact her about entering the parade. You may enter your float, cars, horses, bikes, etc. The following week, the Lumberton Police Department will host the Day in the Park on March 31, 2013. The board also approved a Fashion Show Fund-Raiser for the KEKE B Foundation. The event will be held at the 5th Avenue School on April 27, 2013.
The board hired Christopher Brumfield as a full-time certified police officer. They promoted Michael Shane Flynt to the position of Lieutenant at the recommendation of Chief Elsie Cowart. They voted to allow Officer Nate Works to attend the SFST (Standardized Field Sobriety Testing) on March 12-14, 2013. The board accepted the one year lease with the Gold Coast Skydivers pending proof of their insurance. The board also approved to have Merlene Wall and Betty Speights approved to become Notary Publics for the City of Lumberton. Bobby Gibson requested his name be added as well. That completes the review of the meeting.
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