The video from the Dillon County Council meeting on January 24:
[youtube]sDilnKxYxZU[/youtube]By Betsy Finklea
Lake View Mayor Matthew Elvington appeared before the Dillon County Council at their meeting on Wednesday to express his displeasure over the transfer of monies allocated for the Lake View area to the county’s general fund.
The vote to transfer the funds took place in December at a called meeting.
Mayor Elvington was on the agenda for Wednesday’s meeting. When called upon to speak, he made the followings presentation, which The Herald obtained after the meeting. In order to make sure that all of his points are made, we are printing that verbatim below:
Thank you for the opportunity to allow me to accurately represent the people of Lake View and express our displeasure and position on the vote to move and use the 1% sales tax money. Let me start off by saying when I refer to Lake View, I don’t only mean the people in the town. I mean the people over the entire district. The people of Lake View voted with the rest of Dillon County to apply a 1% sales tax in 2003. Since voting we have been eagerly waiting for our opportunity to benefit from the investment we made to the county. Unfortunately, to our dismay the money that was allocated for Lake View was supposedly “spent,” then when no receipts could be found, or as council would like for us to believe they in “good faith” took out a bond for some other projects and placed the Lake View money in a separate account. Let me remind everyone that this is the platform that all of the council candidates from our district ran on. Everyone remembers all of the newspaper articles “Where’s The Money.”
After the town met with a few on council and the administrator in the administrator’s office, we were under the assumption that the county would make this right. Only after jumping through hoops and proceeding to gather bids and assembling projects for the county to approve, we are told that there was no money available for Lake View and that the $500,000 would have to be used to balance the budget. This happened less than six months after we were told by county that they wanted to make this right. Let me ask this question. If you loan someone money and haven’t received it after 15 years and every time you see that person they tell you they’re going to pay you back next time, would you have any faith in them making it right? This is where Lake View is right now. We have heard hollow promises for too long now. After the moving of the money to the “General Fund” or should I say the “great unknown” where it disappeared from before, we can only feel defeated and misrepresented throughout the district. I’m not here to debate whether it is legally right or wrong for council to move the money, we’ll let the judicial system decide when it comes to that. I’m here to say it’s not right in the eyes of the public. Lake View has contributed to the success of the 1% sales tax but never reaped the rewards. The one example that I would like to share is the Wellness Center. It was one of the original projects along with Lake View’s. It is one of the greatest assets to the public in the whole county. That wellness center was started with $500,000 from the same money where Lake View was supposed to receive over $700,000. If we were given the option to use and invest that money that was allocated to Lake View, where would we be now and how much could it have helped the livelihood of our citizens. I’d like to conclude my address by quoting some of the comments I’ve heard from people throughout our district.
“If they used the Lake View money instead of raising taxes, doesn’t that mean they made Lake View pay the tax increase for the whole county?”
“If they were going to take our money you’d think we should at least get something other than Dillon’s rec hand me down football helmets and gear from the county.”
“Really! They are taking our money and buying a motor-grader for the county!”
“Lake View can’t get any of its own money but the county can purchase a $45000 Truck for the Little Rock Fire Department.”
“They took our money and created another good ‘ole boy position in the county. That makes two created positions in the last year!”
“Well, at least when the schools raise taxes they follow through, and we see improvements in our community!”
These comments I’ve shared are all about priorities and its obvious Lake View is not one of them!
Hopefully, you all understand the frustration from the people of Lake View. I believe the biggest mistake made in politics is losing the trust of the citizens. You know you have lost the trust of the citizens when a council member sends a county employee while on the job and in a county vehicle to the town of Lake View to request financial statements through the FOIA. I think council needs to be focused more on the county’s financials in their current state than on the town’s. Maybe while we’re at it we can create a position to make up for the job that’s not getting done while employees are doing some of the council members errands. Why a Council member would be interested in the finances of a town only after the money allocated for the town was given away is beyond me, but unfortunately that’s where we are today. In my closing statement, I’d like to make the same request that I believe Robbie Coward did when he lost trust in our former county administrator just like we all have lost trust in the county. I’d like to request that the county reinstate the posting of the accounts payable ledger on the county’s website. This way we can at least have transparency, and the public can see where our money—the money we’re not getting—is being spent.
Mr. Chairman, I’m asking you to call a vote on reinstating the postings at this meeting or at the latest the next called meeting.
I’d like to share this story with you.
As I was preparing this last night with a heavy heart on the fact it has come to this., my oldest daughter asked me what’s wrong. I proceed to tell her I’m going to a meeting tomorrow and I’m going to probably make some people mad and I’m going to have some people who are not going to like me after that. Then she asks me why so, I try to break it down for her. I say well if there is a bully in your class and he keeps pushing everyone around causing trouble and makes everyone have stay in at recess someone must stand up to him for him to stop. Even though you may get picked on even more and you may even be hated by the bully and his friends its alright because the rest of the class will thank you and look up to you for standing up for them. That what my job as mayor is, its to stand up and represent the people of Lake View.
Thank you for your time.
Councilman Jack Scott then took the floor. He thanked everyone from Lake View for showing up. He said that he had a question. He said this is not a “gotcha” meeting. He said he was here to tend to business which is what the was elected for with nothing hidden.
He asked, “Can you tell me Matthew (referring to Mayor Elvington) how much money Lake View got on the one percent sales tax?” Elvington responded $1.2 million for infrastructure and $31,000 that the last councilman got to provide recreation equipment. “This is not a ‘gitcha’ question. I didn’t know myself,” said Scott, who said he had asked the county administrator the same question. “The people of Lake View elected me to come up here and take care of business and that’s what I’ve been doing.
He said the vote they took, and he said this was not a “gitcha” again, but that the last time they took a vote he was headed to the beach and Elvington called him at Hardee’s and asked him if he was going to the meeting. He said he asked him what meeting he was talking about because he had forgotten about it because it was a called meeting on a Friday. He said Elvington explained to him what it was about. Scott said he said that he didn’t have to be there for the council to take the vote to do what they did with Lake View’s money.
He said Councilman Buzzy Finklea is supposed to have one percent money like they do, but if he got three votes beyond himself that could take his money if he’s even got any. He asked Finklea if he had ever gotten a bank statement. Finklea said no.
Scott said he never got a transfer of where they money is at. “I am in the same shape tha that you are in Matthew, and don’t think I haven’t been fighting for you.” He asked is it anybody’s fault up here. No, he responded to his own question, he said said it was just the way the system was working and they were going to get to the bottom of it. He said they had gotten no notice of any transfer of money anywhere and Rodney (County Administrator Rodney Berry) didn’t know so they let him know something he didn’t know. “Now, you can put it in your pipe and smoke it, it is going to be taken care of,” Scott said.
“Now Jack Scott is the demon right now,” Scott said. He said there was all kinds of rumor mills going on around the county.
Let me ask you something. Matthew, Scott said. You and your newly elected city council. “I’m the money man.” He said they were coming to see Rodney and asked if he had ever threatened Rodney about maybe suing him.
Elvington said they had mentioned that they had contacted a lawyer. Scott thanked him for being truthful.
“Rodney Berry hasn’t got a John Brown thing to do with this money,” said Scott. “You’re looking at it right here.”
He said now let’s get down to business. This isn’t a gotcha. He asked how many times that Elvington and his city council had invited him to meet with him about this money. “Be truthful. You’ve been truthful so far, “ Scott said.
Elvington said he hadn’t reached out to him yet.
“Thank you, sir,” said Scott. “I’m the money man. Rodney Berry ain’t got a John Brown thing t do with this money. You don’t like me. Ya’ll don’t like me at the town council. Let’s be truthful,” said Scott.
He said they love running ‘ole Jack down around town. Jack throwed the money away. We love it, don’t we, he asked.
He said Councilman Buzzy Finklea doesn’t have any idea how much money he’s got, how much is coming to him, just like me. “Put it in your pipe and smoke it, we’re going to get to the bottom of it.”
Scott said if he had been invited to the meetings, they would know that he had been working on a state park deal.
He started talking about the Sugar Hill community and questioning Elvington about if he knew where it was. Elvington said he was not sure to which Scott responded, I am supposed to send you back with a $500,000 check, and you don’t know where Sugar Hill is at? Come on, let’s get serious.
Scott said is was at the State Park and the people who live out there have to look at it.
He questioned why he couldn’t get access to that Lake View’s got. “I’m not trying to steal it,” he said.
He questioned Elvington about what they would do with the $500,000 if they got it and f they had discussed it.
An audience member told Scott that Sugar Hill was not at the state park and that Rep. Jackie Hayes was working to get the lake fixed and that the State Park was in her backyard.
Scott said that was not the point he was making. He said the people of Sugar Hill, Floyd Dale, Hayestown, etc. also paid the one percent sales tax. He said this is the reason he couldn’t send him back to the town of Lake View with a $500,000 check.
He then spoke about the money that Lake View did receive and asked him if knew where it was at.
“I am the County Councilman. I control the money,” said Scott. He asked why the secretary down there just couldn’t tell him about the information he wanted. “Why are you trying to hide it from me,” he asked. “I’m proud of it.” He said he wrote the money on the blackboard in his Sunday School class because he was proud that Lake View had plenty of money, but he had to erase it because he was told the mayor and town council would blister him over it. He asked what was so secret about Lake View money.
He said if he had been invited to the meetings, they would know he was working on a deal to try to get District Two to own the state park. Also, he said he had been working on a deal on the Mill Pond and adjacent property for an industrial park and ballfield.
He said it was just let’s start some rumors on Jack.
Lake View Councilman David Kitchens asked Scott if he was going to site there and say that he had never invited him to a meeting. Scott did not respond, and the meeting moved on.
Clarifications And Notes
• This meeting along with the Dec. 1 called meeting where the Lake View area money was transferred can be viewed on The Dillon Herald’s channel on YouTube. Search for The Dillon Herald and look for our sign.
• The motion was made by Councilman Jack Scott to transfer the funds at the Dec. 1 called meeting. The vote to pass the transfer was 4-0.
• Councilman T.F. “Buzzy” Finklea, Jr., stated after the meeting that he knows where Latta’s funds are and the amount of those funds. This is contrary to what Scott said in his remarks.
• A state official told The Herald that the state park is not for sale.
• Anyone can attend a public meeting. One does not have to be invited to attend a public meeting. All one has to do is show up at the meeting date, place, and time. The Lake View Town Council meets on the third Thursday at the Lake View Town Hall at 7:00 p.m.
