Bronson Town Council members are considering eliminating October as their month off. Pictured from the left are council members Berlon Weeks, Jason Hunt, Mayor Robert Partin, Councilman James Beck, Councilwoman Beatrice Roberts and Town Attorney Steven Warm.
By Terry Witt – Spotlight Senior Reporter
When October rolls around every year, Bronson Town Council members take the month off for reasons that remain a mystery. They have no council meetings in October.
It’s always been done that way. They still get paid their monthly salary but no work gets done. They are the only elected board in Levy County that suspends its council meetings for a full month.
Councilman Jason Hunt said he thinks the council should meet in October just like other months to better serve the citizens.
“That’s 31 days people have to wait,” Hunt said.
He said town staff can’t get things done and people can’t get their permits approved when the council is standing on the sidelines in October.
Hunt made the suggestion at the start of the Aug. 5 meeting when council members can bring up issues without an agenda item. They can discuss whatever they have on their mind.
Council members didn’t offer any support for the idea at the meeting.
Councilman Berlon Weeks said he thought the practice of taking off October may have started years ago to give newly elected council members time to get acquainted with their job.
Mayor Robert Partin said after the meeting he thought the practice probably started years ago to give council members some time off after a hectic series of budget workshops and hearings in August and September.
But Partin said he agrees with Hunt. He thinks the practice of taking off October should end.
“That’s why we were questioning the sanity of how this got started,” Partin said. “That’s part of the job.”
Partin said he believes the issue will come back to the council as an agenda item at the next meeting. He thought he saw the item on the proposed agenda for the Aug. 19 meeting.
Not On Agenda
Outspoken resident Elijah Williams asked council members why he hadn’t been placed on the agenda to discuss the qualifications of Clerk Shirley Miller. He said he made a formal request to be on the agenda.
Williams was forced to stand up and be recognized by Partin to speak on the issue.
Resident Elijah Williams asks Town Clerk Shirley Miller why his request to discuss her qualifications wasn’t published on the agenda.
Miller said she saw the speaker’s form Williams submitted asking to discuss her abilities, but she chose not to place it on the agenda “because of the wording on that particular item.”
Williams said it wasn’t his handwriting. Miller said it wasn’t her handwriting either.
Williams said he wasn’t being critical of the clerk.
“Does she have the ability to do things I think she could. She can do it. You were thinking she doesn’t have the qualifications,” Williams said to Weeks.
In past months, Weeks has discussed his desire to hire a city manager. Williams said he thinks Miller may be qualified for the city manager’s job.
“I want to know what she knows,” Williams said.
Weeks responded there’s a big difference between a clerk and a city manager. The jobs are different.
He added that the speaker’s form filled out by Williams looked like he “was attacking” Miller.
Miller got the same impression.
“It gets really old to be attacked as an employee every day,” Miller said.
Williams said the printing on the speaker’s form wasn’t in his handwriting. Miller said it wasn’t in hers either.
“I’m in the twilight zone. I can’t believe this,” Williams said.
PBR Registrations Low
Parks and Recreation Director Curtis Stacy registrations for fall sports were low as of the Aug. 5 meeting.
He said 7 children registered for soccer, 2 for flag football, 5 for contact football and 1 for cheerleading.
The deadline for registering for fall sports is Thursday, Oct. 15. Stacy is hoping that the start of school Monday will spur more interest in signing up for fall sports.
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Town of Bronson Regular Meeting August 5, 2019; Posted August 10, 2019
