Chris Jones: Greene Publishing, Inc.
On Monday, May 8, the Town of Greenville held its regularly scheduled town meeting. The meeting started with Mayor Calvin Malone moving the citizen's participation portion of the meeting to the last agenda item. The council passed the consent agenda, in two steps, as Council-member Barbara Dansey attempted to remove the plan to purchase a truck for the fire and public works department. Council-member Dansey motioned to table the truck issue, which was seconded and failed. A second vote to include the truck purchase passed, 3 – 2.
Two separate agenda items seemed to run together and occupy the majority of the meeting. First, Council-member Joi Collins highlighted the number of absences incurred by Mayor Malone and Council-member Kovacherich Arnold, proclaiming that according to the town charter, section 2.07 (a), their seat should have been vacated. A lengthy argument ensued, with failed attempts by the Mayor to regain order with the gavel. Council-member Dansey approached the absence issue from another angle, claiming that after speaking with the Attorney General's office, she was advised that participation via electronic device had been misinterpreted. Town Attorney Clay Schnitker politely disagreed with Council-member Dansey, stating that in his opinion, if council-members had been allowed to vote over the phone, a judge would consider their participation as evidence that they were not absent. The council requested that Town Manager Jim McCroskey and Town Attorney Schnitker research the number of absences for each council-member, and determine if such absences warranted removal from office.
Alliances seemed to form between members of the council, as Council-member Collins and Council-member Dansey aimed for the removal of Mayor Malone and Council-member Arnold, and Vice-Mayor Seabrooks came to their defense. Several citizens spoke at the meeting, including former town council-members, with a rallying effort to encourage the town council to hold itself accountable and take their positions seriously. One citizen exclaimed “You all know when the meetings are scheduled, you should schedule your appointments around the town meetings.”
During a particularly heated portion of the debate, outspoken concerned citizen Dr. Patricia Hinton exclaimed that the Mayor needed to adjourn the meeting. He responded, saying, “I will in just a minute, but not at your request.”
J.C. Fead, who has worked for the Town of Greenville for more than 22 years, recently submitted his resignation from the position of Public Works Supervisor. Hakili Washington, Greenville's Fire Chief, was hired as his replacement. Fead addressed the council, saying, “I enjoyed working for the town, but y'all have got to come together. For the last ten years, we have been going backwards, not with the citizen participation, but with the council members.” Council-member Collins thanked Fead for his service to the town, and the room erupted in an round of applause as he returned to his seat. Later in the meeting, Town Manager McCroskey acknowledged Fead's service and thanked him for making the transition with Washington smooth. There will be a reception at Town Hall on Friday, May 19, at 3:30 p.m. honoring Fead's years of service to the town. The public is invited to attend.
Dr. Hinton passed out flyers as she encouraged the council to apply for the U.S. Department of Justice's Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) hiring program, which would cover 75 percent of an entry-level salary and benefits of newly hired law enforcement personnel. Greenville does not have its own police department, and relies on the Madison County Sheriff's Office to enforce the law.
The next scheduled town meeting is Monday, June 12.