{"id":5962,"date":"2013-10-08T17:16:15","date_gmt":"2013-10-08T21:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/?p=5962"},"modified":"2013-10-09T16:33:28","modified_gmt":"2013-10-09T20:33:28","slug":"no-contracts-for-tenants-of-leila-ellis-building-lcc-2013-10-07","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2013\/10\/no-contracts-for-tenants-of-leila-ellis-building-lcc-2013-10-07.html","title":{"rendered":"No contracts for tenants of Leila Ellis Building @ LCC 2013-10-07"},"content":{"rendered":"

\r\n\r\n<\/a>\r\nTwo, four, six, many:\r\nthat’s how Lowndes County counts tenants.\r\nIt’s great the county is providing space for organizations\r\nthat help the needy,\r\nbut it’s kind of curious that the county didn’t seem to know\r\nwho or how many organizations were using the Leila Ellis building,\r\nand had no lease agreement with them.\r\nNot to mention it took twenty questions from Commissioners to get\r\nstaff to admit that lack of contracts,\r\nat Monday morning’s\r\n\r\nLowndes County Commission Work Session<\/a>.\r\n

\r\n6.b. Leila Ellis Building-Available Space\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

\r\nKind of like they have\r\n\r\nno contract with the alleged county attorney<\/a>.\r\n

\r\nChad McCleod at one point said\r\ntwo organizations are currently in the building,\r\nLAMP and Cash Prosperity.\r\nHe said the County let LAMP use it, and LAMP let Cash Prosperity use it.\r\n

\r\nIn response to a question from Commissioner DeMarcus Marshall,\r\nCounty Manager Joe Pritchard said under normal circumstances\r\nany organization would need to come to the Commission to ask for space.\r\nThey currently have more applicants than space.\r\n

\r\nCommissioner Crawford Powell wanted to know if the county was going\r\nto set up guidelines for who could lease.\r\nPritchard said they could, and they couldn’t lease to a private business.\r\n

\r\nCommissioner Richard Raines wanted to know if annual leases were the practice\r\nof this board.\r\nPritchard, not actually answering the question asked,\r\nsaid “That would be my suggestion.”\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/a>\r\n\r\nJoTaryla Thomas<\/a>\r\ncame up to speak for\r\n\r\nCash Prosperity Campaign<\/a>,\r\nsaying she’d been in the building for six years,\r\nand her organization provides (“we partner with the Internal Revenue Service”)\r\nfree income tax preparation, free housing counseling, and other\r\nfinancial services, including classes.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\nCommissioner Joyce Evans asked Chad McCleod to explain how the\r\nentire building was used.\r\nHis explanation included\r\n