At the regular meeting on Monday, March 4, the Washington County Board of Supervisors Board President and District Three Supervisor, Carl McGee refused to allow IMS Engineering to work on the Broadway Road project in his district.
This wasn’t news to anyone involved as McGee tried to terminate the county’s contract with its engineering firm at the last meeting.
The motion was not successful reflecting the normal pattern of split votes with this board.
The normal split vote is District 2 Supervisor Tommy L. Benson, III, District 4 Supervisor Mala U. Brooks, and District 5 Supervisor Jerry Redmond, Sr, opposing District 1 Supervisor and Vice-President Lee Gordon, and McGee.
Today's attempt to bar IMS from the project seemed to follow the same pattern until McGee said, “I want a qualified engineer that has good work performance, I’ve seen their work in other districts and I don’t want that in my district.”
Brooks said it didn’t seem fair to the citizens to make them drive on that old road just because McGee didn’t want IMS to do the work.
The board’s attorney Willie Griffin reminded the board that certain road projects fell under a Mississippi state aid project fund, and that to be eligible for the funds the project had to have a qualified engineer overseeing the project.
“Let me be clear, I have serious concerns about our current engineering service,” McGee said, “I have talked about this road for the last four years, it took them two years to acknowledge they even knew where the road was.”
Lorenzo Anderson the county’s engineer from IMS started to approach the podium when Benson motioned him to stop.
“I have not been able to get anything done, I have seen the work being produced by our current engineering service, and I’m not happy with it, and I do not want it on a major thoroughfare in my district,” McGee said. “Hopefully, I can avoid it. We will figure out how to get Broadway done. I’ll work it out as I normally do. I don’t dip, or get into anybody else’s district unless I’m asked. I am only asking for the same respect that I’m showing you. And if I can’t get that same respect, so be it.”
McGee gave the floor to Brooks, who said the work performed in her district by IMS was wonderful and she had no complaints.
Brooks made a motion to allow IMS to do the Broadway project. A vote was taken and it was about to be the usual vote of 3-2 when Benson told McGee that out of respect he would vote with McGee this time.
Gordon asked Anderson to name one project in four years that he had completed.
Anderson mentioned projects his engineering firm inherited from Hooker Engineering that were completed, and Gordon said, no, he wanted projects that “you’ve completed.”
Anderson mentioned designs that were completed and on file with the county but Gordon again said “no.”
Gordon made it clear that he wanted projects that from start to finish IMS has completed.
Anderson talked about bridge repairs made in Gordon’s district and an argument about bridge replacement versus bridge repairs was shut down when Gordon made a motion to retain IMS as they currently were, but to appoint Hooker Engineering as the county’s State-Aid-Project Engineer.
This Motion never received a second because Brooks again made a motion to allow IMS to complete the Broadway project, and again Benson voted with Gordon and McGee.
At this point, Gordon reminded McGee of the Hooker Engineering motion he made, and McGee seconded it.
The motion failed 3-2 for Hooker Engineering to be the Board’s SAP engineer.
Apparently, Benson’s respect didn’t extend to Gordon’s motion.
Even though they’ll need a qualified engineering firm for the Broadway project because its funds are coming through the Mississippi SAP fund.
