Certified deputies receive raises

Marshall County has approved $5,000 raises for certified deputies in an effort to compete with salaries of surrounding counties, according to District 3 supervisor Keith Taylor.

Raises go into effect October 1, and the salaries will go to any new hires.

The board of supervisors approved the measure in a separate motion before the final budget was adopted, he said.

The new budget has an additional $350,000 in the sheriff’s department budget for the raises, Taylor said. He added that Marshall County is following DeSoto County and the City of Hernando pay raises for officers.

Deputy sheriff salaries in DeSoto range between $31,000 and $60,000 a year, according to recent report on the internet. Certified officers get paid more.

Taylor cited a $55,000 a year salary in DeSoto County for certified officers.

A number of other measures are underway to improve ambulance services.

Lifeguard Ambulance Service of Winona won the bid on the service contract and will take over the county’s service in 90 days, Taylor said.

The initial buy-in is for three ambulances but once fully staffed the county will pay $1.9 million.

Lifeguard asked for the Holly Springs station to be moved to Alliance Hospital. Supervisors said Lifeguard believes it will be easier to hire and keep staffed at the hospital as compared to the current location on Highway 178 East next door to the zoning office.

Meanwhile the county will continue operations of the substation in Byhalia and build stations and living quarters for staffers at Chulahoma and Mt. Pleasant at the old Head Start Center.

A sixth substation is to be built near the Marshall County Workforce Training Center in the Chickasaw Trail Industrial Park.

Taylor said he believes corporate donations will come in from the corporations in the industrial park to help support the new ambulance and fire station.

Marshall County is having four new fire trucks built to go to the Red Banks, Mt. Pleasant, Watson and Victoria fire departments. The first truck is being built now, according to EMS director Leland Reed.

Each truck will run $298,000, with the total bill for the four at $1.2 million, Reed said. The pumpers will hold 1,800 gallons of water.

Some other promotions by the board of supervisors include moving Heather Childers to head of the new Justice Court Complex as clerk. Two more deputy clerks will be added.

Priscella Wilkins is transferring from Justice Court to assistant road manager under Mario Pegues, Taylor said.

Gholson pleads for clean intersections

Harris Gholson met with the board of supervisors September 20 to ask that major intersections be brightened so travelers will be impressed. He particularly cited the intersection at Highway 4 West and Highway 7 South.

After talking with the Mississippi Department of Transportation, Gholson said counties can help by cleaning up the intersections – picking up trash and cutting grass.

He said a one- to two-year plan to show some community pride could be undertaken to make intersections first class.

“I’ll get the thing decent,” he said, by picking up trash and planting some winter grass.

“The county is growing and looking good,” Gholson said.

He hopes to have the intersection cleaned up in time for football games in Oxford.

“That’s the state,” said District 4 supervisor George Zinn III. “What are they (the state) prepared to put in it? Skin.”

Gholson said the state wants the county to do it.

“I am going to try to clean it up as a start,” he said. “I think there probably needs to be a light out there.”

Zinn agreed, but said the state needs to take some of the responsibility.

“I don’t know what the city would do,” Gholson said. “I’ll cut the grass and put something on it to look good to Christmas – put some rye grass.”

District 1 supervisor Charles Terry said Holly Springs does a good job in keeping up the area on Highway 7 at the I-22 exits.

“I’d say Harris loves this town,” chancery clerk Chuck Thomas said.

“Y’all are doing a great job. I think now it is managing the future,” Gholson said. “I think it needs to be done to make the county better.”