County receives Rescue Plan funds
More than $3.4 million in American Rescue Plan Act monies have been received by Marshall County, according to chancery clerk Chuck Thomas.
The plan enacted by the United States Congress provides $1.9 trillion overall in relief and stimulus money to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The City of Holly Springs has received its first disbursement of monies as well.
In other recent business, supervisors discussed separate bonding of those working in the zoning department, since zoning is handling so much more money now. The department has been using a blanket bond, supervisors said.
Individual bonding of employees at the zoning department will begin in January.
In the county administrator’s report, Larry Hall took a roll call for those wanting to attend the Mississippi Association of Supervisors Minority Caucus.
Quotes taken for a sign at the Justice Court Building were discussed with Fast Signs Inc. the lowest at $6,015. LSI’s bid of $7,731 was rejected.
A pay application of $181,360 for construction on the Justice Court Complex on West Street by JP Corp was approved.
American Heating and Air won the quote for installation of a four-ton gas/electric unit at the jail and justice court at $8,500. Colston Refrigeration bid $9,000.
A set of design plans for the Rosenwald School project was approved at $1,180.
Supervisors discussed shortage of some cold mix at suppliers since so many calls for the product is making some grades unavailable. Cold mix has to be prepared the day it is going to be used, Hall said.
The board approved overlay of 1.3 miles of Moore Road.
County engineer Larry Britt read a list of roads requests to be programmed on State Aid.
They included portions of the following roads — North Red Banks Road (302 to 72 and Coldwater River to 309); Early Grove; Watson Road west of Lee’s Crossing; Hernando Road; Marianna Road; Bethlehem Waterford Road; Potts Camp Road; Strickland Road; and South Red Banks Road.
The estimated money available from State Aid is about $2.6 million, Britt said.
The request for extra funding from the Emergency Bridge and Road fund won’t come out of the first round. Britt said he was advised to combine the Goat Bridge and Tippah River Bridge replacement and submit it to ERBR round 2.
Howard Subdivision
An agreement with DeSoto County to split the cost of straightening Watson DeSoto Road to make it safer for ingress and egress into a new subdivision on the DeSoto County side is running into the rough.
Britt said DeSoto County keeps pushing for things not in the memorandum of understanding (MOU) the two counties agreed on. “We agreed to pay our half,” he said. “They also wanted us to take bids.” Hall said the new road manager in DeSoto County said DeSoto wouldn’t do anything on the road because it is in Marshall County. Board attorney Amanda Smith noted the MOU the county agreed to stated Marshall County would pay up to $30,000 on the cost of straightening the road. “We need a separate MOU with Dale Howard (subdivision developer),” she said. “There are a lot of things in here. There’s nothing wrong with taking bids. The rest about cost I do not think this board agreed to do.”
“We agreed to do up to $30,000 for paving,” said District 5 supervisor Ronnie Joe Bennett.
Britt recounted the specifics.
“Dale Howard Subdivision is in DeSoto County and they wanted to straighten the road out,” he said.
“We were going to pave up to $30,000 after the road is made ready and engineered,” Bennett said.
“There are a lot of provisions that would potentially cost us money and right-ofway would be huge. It would be good for us to have a better road, but....”
Smith said Howard should pay for the ROW easements.
“Give Amanda authority to say keep it up to $30,000 and that’s it,” Bennett said.
The board approved a preliminary plat for a 45 lot subdivision and bonding requirements for erosion and road repair prior to the county applying the final layer of asphalt. The board approved the plat with about $202,000 in bond requirements for the road and erosion control.
Supervisors voted to name the indoor arena at the fairgrounds to honor the late Jerry Bolden, rodeo producer and longtime member of the fairground board of directors.