City could contract out more work
Holly Springs Mayor Kelvin Buck and the board of aldermen recently considered a list of routine grounds work that could be contracted out.
Randy Benham, with Lawn Works/Tree Works (the company that keeps the cemetery lawn cut), has proposed to expand the work it could do for the city.
A price for the upkeep of each area was submitted to the city board June 20.
He proposed prices to manage the city properties such as parks and common grounds and the area at the utility department, plus prices for tree trimming.
Lawn Works has held a contract to mow grass at the cemetery since August 2016.
Benham said the performance at the cemetery is a good test of the quality of work the company provides. Lawn Works also has done some tree trimming for the utility department since the December 23, 2015, tornado.
Benham provided prices for mowing lawns every 10 days or on a 14-day schedule during the summer.
Alderman Sharon Gipson expressed are missing the opportunity to work for the city by contracting out the grounds work.
Buck said hiring out the cemetery grounds work has freed up employees to work in other areas of the city such as right-of-way cutting. He said city employees could pay more attention to cutting areas on the entrances to the city north and south.
“These are proposals to pick and choose what areas would be outsourced,” Buck said. “They are just ballpark numbers for the board to think about outsourcing to free up city employees.”
Alderman Tim Liddy said he has heard lots of compliments on the quality of work being done at the cemetery. He said the current city employees have gotten behind on some things.
Larry Miller, supervisor of Buildings, Streets and Grounds, was asked to comment.
He said his department has five or six positions that are not filled.
“Randy’s work is immaculate, and he is paying attention to paper pickup and cleaning,” Miller said.
“If you had those four men you are short, could you all do this?” Buck asked Miller.
Gipson asked how many men the city could hire from Holly Springs with the money spent on outsourcing.
Buck said the city is trying to reduce costs.
“Some people are sitting in the city looking for jobs,” Gipson said. “That’s a year’s salary for someone working in the City of Holly Springs.”
In other business, the mayor and board:
• went into executive session to discuss accounting at the Holly Springs Utility Department with TVA respesentative Bill Dukes and then with D. Miller with the utility.
• discussed support of the ACT Work Ready Communities initiative.
• accepted an invitation to the July 15 gala celebrating the Ida B. Wells Barnett birthday.
• appointed alderman Mark Miller and Buck as voting delegates to the 2017 Mississippi Municipal League convention.
The board also approved the following expenditures:
• $1,128 to Scott Insurance for bonds for the mayor, aldermen, clerks and attorney.
• $19,217 to ASCO Sanitation.
• $1,198 to Commerce Bank.
• $9,156 to Barnes & Brower on Hugh Craft Survey Office work.
• $134,941 to TLSL for excavation on erosion control on Old Highway 4 and Whaley Drive. The Natural Resources Conservation Service will reimburse the city for $101,120 of this expense.
• $10,120 to Elliott & Britt Engineering for engineering on the NRCS erosion control project. The money is 100 percent reimbursable to the city by NRCS.
• accepted the resignation of Falando Marion from the police department.
• approved permission to advertise for a police officer.
• approved an administrative contract with partners (Community Development Block grant/ and Northeast Mississippi Planning and Development District) in the amount of $40,000 to correct sewer problems on Rencher Drive and Martin Luther King Drive.
• approved transfer of Carmetra Tucker from HSUD to the Job Resource Innovation Center.