Final approval of the 2016-2017 fiscal year audit for the city of Indianola was tabled once again during the Indianola Board of Aldermen meeting on Monday night.
The firm of Brown, Ewing & Company, P. A., had presented the findings at the board’s first meeting in September and noted the need for some minor corrections, so the city lawmakers opted to table it until Monday night's session.
However, when the item was presented for consent, Alderman Sam Brock indicated that he was not ready to make final approval. "That's a lot of information to read, Mayor," he said. Rosenthal agreed. So Alderman Marvin Elder made a motion to table it until the next meeting and Rosenthal said okay.
Alderman Darrell Simpson made a statement about how the remaining audits should be handled. "I think we should bid these audits out in the future because that just seems like an awful lot of money and we are five years behind," he said.
Simpson reasoned that if the city is going to pay out money for the audits, then they should be receiving results.
Rosenthal stated that quotes were taken, but noted that professional services contracts are awarded based on qualifications and not price.
Simpson said, "This is 2021, about to be 2022 and we're still dealing with 2016-17 audit, something's wrong."
Even though Rosenthal mentioned the onset of COVID-19 in 2020 as a factor—which did not retard Simpson’s attitude—Rosenthal still expressed his dismay at the way the audit was conducted. "I'm not happy with it because our previous ones, the other people who quoted it, were to come and actually come to City Hall and do the work, but these people told us they were and they still haven't," Rosenthal said.
That aroused a comment from Alderman Marvin Elder. He mentioned email communications involving Rosenthal, the accounting firm and himself. Elder suggested that the reason for the delay in receiving the report was due to Rosenthal not supplying all of the required documentation in a timely manner; however, Rosenthal denied that and stated that he actually hand delivered some of the information to the company in Jackson.
Simpson continued with his aforementioned train of thought regarding the predicament of the city. "I just don't understand how this city can run five years in the past, we don't know who we owe, what we owe, did we pay everybody, did we not pay everybody? We’re five years in the past right now you can't run your budget that way and I can't either," said Simpson.
Rosenthal reminded him that the 2016 audit is complete, so Simpson apologized with an apparent hint of sarcasm and said the city was only four years behind.
In other business,
Brock asked City Clerk Kaneilia Williams to come up with an alternate plan for the water department clerks' training session—scheduled for Wednesday October 6—that does not involve closing the department to customer service.
Brock asked if there was anyone who could remain and keep the department open, but Williams said they all would be in the training session. She has arranged training with the city's software provider—Delta Systems—for herself and the two water clerks.
Alderman Ruben Woods asked how long the training would take and Williams replied that the company stated that it would depend on the amount of training needed.
Elder suggested that Williams seek out an alternate time for the training, possibly after hours since she is a salaried employee and only the other two would possibly incur overtime. Williams stated that the software provider set the schedule for the training. Elder said, "Well, what is best for the city? That's what Delta's going to have to understand."
Williams said that she had planned to post public notices and give advance notification to the citizens that the department would be closed on that day. Elder insisted that the software company should make concessions and Brock suggested that they split the training over multiple days so someone would be there to keep the department open.
Rosenthal said they would get with Delta Systems and try to work out a compromise even if they have to pay them overtime.
Also,
The city leaders approved a request to conduct a homecoming parade on October 15, starting at 4:00 p.m.
They discussed the installation of light poles on Kentwood Lane and North South West Plaza. They also talked about what could be done to make Entergy aware of and more responsive to light pole outages. Rosenthal said, "On our city website, in the lower right hand corner, there's a click that the citizens can click to report street light outages."
He maintained that the electric power company typically responds faster to individual citizens than they do to the city leaders. He said on the city's website residents can put in their cell phone number when they are reporting light pole outages and Entergy would text them to let them know a schedule and when it has been repaired. The city's website is, www.IndianolaMS.gov.
The city lawmakers also held off on repealing the current noise regulation until the proposed noise ordinance can go into effect and took no action on a racing ordinance because there is reportedly a similar ordinance already in place. However, they will check to see if penalties are associated with the present ordinance.
They approved a Mississippi Developmental Authority CDBG maintenance resolution that will bring in approximately a half million dollars to the city for drainage issues.
