Recreation Authority unites for first meeting
Published 6:58 pm Tuesday, July 7, 2015
The Bainbridge-Decatur County Recreation Authority’s first meeting was held Tuesday. In front, from left: Jeff Lynn, Tynese Jones and Carol Floyd. In back, from left: Bert Hines, Brandon Conley and Jeff Findley. — Shelby Farmer
Tuesday, the Bainbridge-Decatur County Recreation Authority held its first meeting to elect a chairperson, vice chairperson and secretary-treasurer.
In accordance with the Bainbridge-Decatur County Recreation Authority Act, the three authority members appointed by the Decatur County Board of Commissioners elected Jeff Findley, one of the three Bainbridge City Council appointees, as the first chairperson. The three Bainbridge appointees elected Brandon Conley, a county appointee, as the vice chairman. The Authority unanimously voted to elect Tynese Jones as secretary-treasurer. The officers will serve until Dec. 31, 2016.
“The chairman is going to have to be the person to head this thing up. Jeff is very involved in the community and is in the know,” Brandon Conley said of his nomination of Findley as chairman.
“I agree that the chairman should be someone that is knowledgeable, has a little more insight into how things work overall and have the involvement,” Tynese Jones said.
Bainbridge City Manager Chris Hobby, who is a non-voting member of the Authority, said that electing officers was the only requirement for the first meeting, but the members spent time discussing individual questions they have as a new entity, especially on where to begin. Hobby said that he will spend the next few weeks getting budgetary and staffing information to the Authority and will also reach out to an expert or other recreation authority for guidelines on the best ways to proceed over the next year of planning.
Hobby reminded the Authority members that it is a separate entity from the Bainbridge City Council and Decatur County Board of Commissioners.
“The City Council and County Commission have the responsibility of appointing the members, and that is where our responsibility ends,” Hobby said. “Our job, on the side of the City Council and County Commission, is to make sure we have people to fill these roles, but the law doesn’t allow us to interfere with the operation of the authority.”
The Authority will meet monthly at the Bainbridge Community Center on Potter Street.
Its next meeting will take place Aug. 6 at 6 p.m.
