Personnel matter in HSUD discussed
A nearly two hour and a half meeting behind closed doors in an emergency executive session dealt with mostly personnel matters in the Holly Springs Utility Department and litigation at the April 20 meeting of the mayor and board of aldermen.
The personnel matter concerned five employees in the HSUD central office. General manager Wayne Jones and IT director Derrick Jefferson were shuttled in and out of the executive board room several times.
Coming out of executive session at 8:43 p.m., Holly Springs Mayor Sharon Gipson announced no action was taken in executive session but she would be calling a mandatory meeting with the employees possibly Thursday, April 22, to address employee concerns.
During public comment, Linda Brown of West Woodward Avenue asked the city to remove or lower the height of speed bumps, which she said has caused her to have to make repairs to her 2024 Infiniti.
“It's costing me money,” she said. “My car is new and it is not helping. It sounds like airplanes or Indy 500. If it was helping, I'd say it's ok. But it's not helping.”
Brown named several streets where the speed bumps are not helping slow traffic, but are causing her alignment problems in the front end of her car.
Three candidates for positions of apprentice linemen and one for a meter reader were dismissed after motions to hire did not receive a second.
Alderman-at-large Dexter Shipp said he had not been given time to go over the applications after a motion by Ward 2 alderman Andre Jones failed for lack of a second on the first candidate introduced for apprentice linemen, who did not have a commercial driver's license.
An inquiry by aldermen on the issuance of a contract for repair of the ravine on Cuba Street/Hill Street was not acted upon at the meeting. The item was added to the agenda by Ward 4 alderman Patricia Merriweather.
Gipson said project engineer Larry Britt had sent his recommendation to award the contract to White Construction in Byhalia, the sole bidder, but she didn't have time to review it before the meeting, before signing the contract.
In other business, the board, with all aldermen attending except Ward 3 alderman Colter Teel:
• authorized payment of $116,179 to Fifer and Associates, the contract balance for the fire station renovation project.
· approved payment of $21,429 to Advance Collision for repair of a police department 2022 Ford Explorer.
• authorized vice-mayor Dexter Shipp to sign a check payable to Memphis Auto LLC for $1,000 deductible on the repair of a vehicle. Gipson said the employee, who was involved in an accident, was not given permission to take the vehicle and did not go through the proper procedure, so she would not sign the check.
Jones said it is in the city's best interest to pay the invoice and made a motion to authorize Shipp to sign the check. Merriweather seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote of the board.
• approved city general bills and claims and the city utility bills and claims.
The board approved the following items on the consent agenda: · payment of $145,024 to the Holly Springs School District for the April 2025 tax collect.
• transfer of $170,537 to the general fund for the April 2025 tax collect.
• transfer of $145 and $42,986 to the general fund for the Tourism tax collect for April 2025. The board approved payment of one half of the tourism collect, $72 and $21,493, to the Holly Springs Tourism Bureau.
• transfer of $1,350 to the general fund for ABC Liquor Tax receipts.
• transfer of $71 to the general fund for other taxes.
• transfer of $2,878 to the Department of Finance and Administration for the April 2025 Municipal Court settlement.
• transfer of $2,747 to the general fund for the April 2025 Ncourt settlement.