The City Council made six appointments Tuesday to the Columbus-Lowndes Recreation Authority and the Historic Preservation Commission.
In a 2-4 vote, councilmen Gene Taylor, of Ward 1, and Fred Stewart, of Ward 4, voted to re-appoint Alfred Brandon to the CLRA. Councilmen Joseph Mickens, of Ward 2, Charlie Box, of Ward 3, Kabir Karriem, of Ward 5, and Bill Gavin, of Ward 6, voted against.
Councilmen then voted 4-2 again along those same lines to appoint Jimmy R. Reese to the five-year position, which Brandon vacates May 25.
Taylor said he voted for Brandon, a Columbus High School coach, because he was an “all-around good guy” who was instrumental in planning the Burns Bottom soccer complex.
Some of the board members said they voted for Reese, a park employee, because he contacted them and secured their votes before Brandon applied for re-appointment.
After picking Reese, the council voted unanimously to re-appoint Joseph Boggess, Mike Lowery and John G. Hudson to the Historic Preservation Commission. Their four-year terms, along with Police Chief Joseph St. John”s and Ralph Null”s, also expire May 25.
St. John had applied for re-appointment but recently withdrew his name. Null recently resigned.
Two new members — John A. Andresen and local architect Bryan Brown — were also appointed to the commission.
Barbara E. Jordahl applied for both the CLRA and Historic Preservation Commission but was not appointed to either.
In other business, the council unanimously awarded the 2011 city paving contract, which is worth more than $2 million, to Falcon Contracting. Falcon placed the lower of two bids for the 150-day contract, which goes into effect in June.
The council also heard again from an irate 33-year minister and heard complaints about flooding from Ward 2 citizens.
The Rev. Tommie Ross claims he has been harassed by police officers, specifically 35-year-old Stephen Kemp, since last year, when he had an altercation with police.
Ross claimed he has been “picked on continuously” since then to the point where he is afraid to go to events like the recent Market Street Festival.
He went on to threaten the officers, to the protests of St. John and councilmen, saying that if he and the officers were in the local “strongman” competition, there wouldn”t be enough of them left to “sweep up in a dustpan.”
After concluding its regular business, the council called an executive session to discussion a Fire and Rescue personnel issue and potential litigation involving a disgruntled vendor.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 43 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.