The Webster Progress-Times

WALTHALL - Webster County officials are trying to find additional office space for the Department of Human Services.

DHS County Director Freda Jones met with the Board of Supervisors about the matter on June 4. According to Jones, DHS plans to staff the local office with up to seven more employees in the Department of Family and Children's Services but that space is not available.

After some discussion, supervisors agreed to look into possibly using the vacant Garan building, which is just across the street from the Human Services Building on East Gould Avenue, for additional office space.

Board members said that, according to the property deed, the county owns the building and most of the property. No formal action was taken, but board attorney Buchanan Meek Jr., who researched the deed, has already been in contact with Garan officials about ownership of the property. He indicated that they have had some questions about it and said he would get back with them.

Also last week, David Clark and Scooter Culpepper with Brandon-based Mississippi Court Collections gave an overview of services provided by the company, which is mainly collection of justice court fines. Clark said he would check back with the board in about 30 days.

In other business, the board:

€ approved a 10-year tax exemption request in the amount of $24,427.75 for Hawkeye Glove Manufacturing for new machinery and equipment.

€ took no action on ad valorem tax exemption and freeport warehouse requests from Roseburg Forest Products.

€ authorized Deputy Circuit Clerk Wanda Robinson to attend training offered by Diebold Election Systems June 11-15 in Ridgeland.

€ authorized all supervisors, the chancery clerk and board attorney to attend the Mississippi Association of Supervisors Annual Summer Conference June 18-21 in Biloxi.

€ authorized Tax Assessor-Collector Barbara Gore to attend a conference July 16-19 in Biloxi.

The board recessed until 9:30 a.m. June 25.

Minutes of previous meetings reflect that the Board of Supervisors handled these matters on the dates given:

MAY 7

€ received the Extension office's proposed budget for 2007-08.from county Extension Director Lisa Stewart.

€ voted to pay Meek to check the title and prepare the deed for the Hawkeye access road project from the parking lot to Highway 182, with the total cost of $300 to be billed to the city of Eupora.

€ voted to hire Watkins, Ward and Stafford to conduct the audit of county business for 2005-06.

€ voted to enter into a new contract at the county jail with Securus to replace the existing contract. The vendor is the same and the percentage of the calls to be paid to the county is 35 percent.

€ granted a 10-year industrial tax exemption to Plymouth Tube Inc. in the amount of $1.99 million.

€ authorized Coroner Steve Wells to attend the Coroners Summer Education Conference in Vicksburg June 12-14.

€ authorized Justice Court Judge Rebecca Ellison to attend an associational conventional July 8-12 in Biloxi.

€ voted to pay North Mississippi Medical Center $395 for services rendered on Henry Henley on April 27, 2005, when he was a state inmate in the county jail.

MAY 21

€ voted to hire these summer workers: Neil McCuiston and Casey Skelton for District 2; Tyler McCain, Shane Corder and Raleigh Middleton for District 3; and Reginald O'Briant , Taylor Williams and Matt Fulgham for District 4.

€ authorized Justice Court Clerk Janice Brunty to attend an associational convention Sept. 5-7 in Hattiesburg and a domestic violence conference in Philadelphia in June.

MAY 31

€ voted to fill an abandoned well on Dan Brunty's property in District 3.

€ voted for District 1 to hire Chadwick M. Gaston and Zackary Taylor, and District 5 to hire Jacob Prince and Jonathan Cole as summer workers.

The minutes state that the board considered a letter from James Ronnie Vickers, Tellie J. Vickers and Jackie Vickers Taylor requesting that Double Springs Church Road's name be changed to "Vickers-Double Springs Road," which apparently was used for the road at one time. The board noted that there is already a Vickers Road in the county and declined to take action.