The city got stuck with a $200,000 bill for demolishing the Town Creek Apartments and runs the risk of further mass expenditures unless it follows federal procedures in demolishing buildings, Council President Ben Allen said in a special City Council meeting Monday.
Allen said that when the Melton administration determined that the Town Creek Apartments had to be demolished as soon as possible, it tried to shift funds around in order to skirt federal guidelines. The idea was that the city would skip the environmental evaluation required in order to draw on some of the city's $500,000 of Community Development Block Grant money earmarked for demolition. Instead, the city would pay for the demolition by borrowing money from the Public Works Department, specifically the re-surfacing fund.
"We had to do it quickly," Leo Stevens, development assistance manager of federal program management, told the council. "Had we had the time, we would have taken the $200,000 directly out of the CDBG demolition fund."
Mayor Frank Melton took office determined to demolish the Town Creek Apartments as soon as possible, and he bragged about tearing them down quickly in an interview with JFP Editor-in-Chief Donna Ladd on April 5, 2006.
"Town Creek Apartments are on the ground now," Melton said. "That started five years ago, and I was able to get that done in 30, 40 days, to get it out of this community. They're gone; that's history."
The Melton administration had hoped CDBG would pay for the demolition later, and then the city could shift that money back to the re-surfacing fund. The problem, Stevens explained, was that HUD considers re-surfacing to be maintenance, making it ineligible for CDBG money.
The result is that the city was stuck with the entire $200,000 bill, which severely strained the Public Works budget.
"Some public works staff got worked over the coals because of a waterline leak in my ward," Allen said, "but they couldn't do anything about it because there was no money left in their budget."
Allen said he was bringing the issue to council's attention because he had been told that soon they would be asked to vote on another set of large demolitions, and he wanted them to know of potential complications when they voted rather than "six to eight months down the road."
Jackson Walker, an attorney with the city's legal department, confirmed that the administration planned to place some major demolitions before council in eight days, though he did not provide specifics.
Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon expressed outrage that the Melton administration had shuffled funds from one department to another without council approval.
"If we're moving hundreds of thousands of dollars from department to department, it seems to me we should have passed a budget amendment," Barrett-Simon said. "I question the legality of doing that without (City Council's) approval. Why do we spend so much time working out a budget if we're just going to ignore it later?"
Chief Administration Officer Robert Walker told council that he believed they had approved all shifts of funds between departments. "The only truly major shift we had was when we moved community improvement and code enforcement to the police department, which this body approved. Other changes were approved by you in the budget revisions," Walker said.
Allen said he'd had calls from staff in the Department of Public Works who felt they were being pressured to bend the rules. "We have to back up our staff," he said. "They're put in a very tough position here. They're told they have to come up with the money (for a demolition) somehow. I've had some panicked staff call me—I won't say who—but they feel like they're being compromised."
Councilman Marshand Crisler said he wanted demolitions of large complexes presented to council separately from house demolitions so they wouldn't inadvertently pass an expensive demolition as part of a large slate of house demolitions.
Under questioning from Councilman Charles Tillman, Rick Hill, who will soon take over as chief financial officer from Peyton Prospere, said that the city's own demolition fund was only $280,000, most of which would be consumed by a single demolition on the order of the Town Creek Apartments.
"It sounds good in the press to say we're going to go tear these places down, but we have to do it the right way," Allen said. "We have a new lady (Trudy Fisher) at (the Department of Environmental Quality) that's as tough as a 2-bit steak. … Before we vote on these demolitions, I want to make sure we really know what we're voting for."
At the end of the meeting, Allen told Walker that the administration should expect a confirmation vote on Interim Fire Chief Todd Chandler in the new year. Chandler has served as interim chief for a year and a half, and Melton has twice withdrawn his nomination when it was clear that City Council would vote to reject him.
"We've confirmed every department head but one," Allen said, "and that's the fire chief. We need resolution to this situation. I've talked to Frank (Melton) about this 10 times, and you can try to talk to him. We're not going to vote on this until the new year, but this council is determined to have this hearing."
Allen also said, for the benefit of the press, that City Council had already had many conversations with Walker and City Attorney Sarah O'Reilly-Evans about her contract. They would address it further in the new year, he said.
Chief of Staff Marcus Ward told council that the U.S. Senate had delayed voting on nine of 11 appropriations bills in deference to the new Democratic leadership that would take control in January. He assured council that because of the close working relationship between Sen. Thad Cochran and Sen. Robert Byrd, the city and the state's appropriations were unlikely to be reduced.
Councilman Frank Bluntson, who announced Sunday that he has a growth on his pancreas, said his doctors were trying to determine when he should have surgery at University of Mississippi Medical Center. "I know this is a critical thing because of where it's located. I don't know if it's malignant or benign, but I sure could use your prayers," Bluntson said, struggling with tears.
All the council members present, including Barrett-Simon, Crisler, Allen and Tillman, offered Bluntson their support and prayers.
Leo Stevens' title has been corrected since this story was first posted.
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