There was a bit of controversy at Tuesday night’s meeting of the Jonesboro Board of Aldermen, aside from the cooperation on the cemetery issue.
District A’s Sam Lamkin began the meeting with a motion that the meeting not be held, since he nor none of of the other aldermen had seen any of the documents they were to be discussing and voting upon until they arrived at city hall.
Said Lamkin, “Due to the fact that in my packet there was nothing but an itinerary (agenda), I therefore move that the meeting be postponed, so that we have time to go over what’s in this packet that’s on our desk.” He added, “There was nothing in my packet that was delivered to me except this itinerary.”
After a bit of discussion, the town’s controversial mayor Leslie Thompson convinced Lamkin that as much time as necessary could be taken during the meeting to study the issues.
Lamking noted that “…it’s also important for us to have the information so we have proper time to go over it.”
Lamkin’s issue is not new – District B’s Renee Stringer has often complained about not receiving timely information upon which decisions are made.
During the public comment part of the meeting, Jonesboro resident Robert Gamble addressed the board regarding the cuts to the Jonesboro Police Department’s budget.
Said Gamble, “This is endangering our banks, our stores, our businesses, even our homes.” He added, “I pay tax tax money for a police department. Why haven’t we got one up to date?”
He also noted that “This is a service that is due to our community and our town.”
Later in the meeting during budget discussions, Thompson responded that the JPD’s budget cuts represented “fat” and that the current shortage of patrol officers was due to medical issues with several of them.
Said Thompson, “One of the officers had a hip surgery… another officer had a heart attack… another had contracted arthritis.”
Stringer brought up water meters, and noted that her last monthly bill was over $500. While investigating her issue, she learned that of the town’s total 2,065 water meters, about 665 of them were not functioning. From that finding, she said, efforts were already underway to correct the issue.
On the issue of animal control the mayor noted that discussions were underway to possibly cooperate with the Jackson Parish Police Jury (JPPJ) to come up with a solution to that issue.
06/14/2012 at 6:24 am |
Sam, Sam, Sam….why you want to stop the meeting? It doesn’t matter that you did not have anything in your packet.
Devin, LeStevic and Charla got you covered. The Mayor’s trio will vote as he indicates and you can just sit there …..cause the deck is stacked against you all the time.
No matter how valid you though was….and it was great to hear you speak up….you did not stand your ground about what is right.
You followed Leslie ….just like he wanted and knew you would.
Did Leslie give you any reason as to why your packet was empty?
Did all council members receive empty packets?
It is very apparent that you and Ms. Stringer do not have any chance of accomplishing anything for the good of the majority.
These meetings are a joke and it is such a shame. The one laying on the table does not need to hear or understand anything….he is instructed to follow his leader!
06/14/2012 at 10:04 am |
TWO THUMBS UP!!!!!!
06/14/2012 at 8:52 am |
Lumpkins pitiful. Maybe his boss should get him evaluated for 30 days.
06/15/2012 at 9:46 am |
Mr. Lumpkin is an especially qualified member of the panel and I see no sane reason for him to undergo any type of evaluation. Now, the CTIC is another story. By not supplying timely information about important issues he is (a) trying to ramrod something past the panel or (b) not prepared for any type of discussion because he is ignorant of the subject and possible consequences. Now, if you want to the Badge Flasher to step aside for a month for medical tests I would be all for that. He certainly act like he is lost or stupid or both or worse.
06/15/2012 at 4:34 pm |
Please share with us the facts by which you opine that especially qualified fits that description? You must not listen to the tapes……….check the facts.
06/15/2012 at 8:38 pm |
Brandon, it’s “on which you opine” not as you so illiterately stated. I can tell from that comment that you are a fixed news watcher and a Bill O’relilly fan. Mr. Lampkin is not in lock-step with the CTIC which in and of itself makes him especially qualified to request data on important issues. I do believe that the CTIC has a lot to hide and I hope the auditor hurries up and gets “his hide.” Here is my last question: “Why did the mayor (ugh, I had to use that term describing Leslie the Least) not provide information on what was going to be discussed and voted on?
06/15/2012 at 9:02 pm |
Mr. Donald Marion Fowler, if you would care to go to thetruth@jonesboro.com and listen to the facts…the tapes that depict the truth, you can hear just how (lock step) he is and how he votes for any and all things that come to the table in order to gain favor with the mayor. I personally could care less about your critique of my grammar or your opinion of anything for that matter, as your writing on here depicts a person just as anti one man as the other man is against an entire race. How can you sit in judgement of anyone? For your information, I don’t watch Bill( O’reilly.) If you are so wise, legend in your own mind you are….why not check your spelling of Bill’s last name…………as you erroneously spelled. Touche!
06/15/2012 at 9:15 pm |
My father (how appropriate that day after tomorrow is Father’s Day) used to tell me “Son, don’t engage in a battle of wits with a defenseless person.” You seem to exemplify that warning from my Dad.
06/15/2012 at 9:50 pm |
Just your opinion, and you seem to exemplify a warning from Benjamin Franklin….. “a man wrapped up in himself makes a very small bundle…….
06/14/2012 at 9:37 am |
How does one “contract arthritis”? There seems to be a bunch of folks with arthritis….I sure do not want to contract this illness.
Surely the Mayor knows what he is talking about….he is our king and it is his kingdom.
In Mayor Thompson’s kingdom, you might contract arthritis!
06/15/2012 at 9:49 am |
The term contract in the game of bridge means the winner of the last bid each hand or an agreement between two or more people or to make smaller, like the CTIC’s brain.
06/19/2012 at 12:00 am |
That is my question as well. How does one “contract” arthritis? I think someone needs to get Leslie a dictionary. But then, could he understand it?
06/14/2012 at 10:00 am |
Could the disfunctioning water meters be a result of being disabled by residents in a certain area? Wouldn’t surprise me if they did break them or do some harm to them. Another way of getting around paying a water bill. Which, by the way, has been the NORM since ole Les has been sitting on the throne.
Samuel, I do agree with one of the other bloggers, you needed to stand your ground against the king and not give in to weakness.
06/14/2012 at 10:17 am |
What about the certified officers the police department tried to hire a couple of months ago? Why did the council reject them? A department is suppose to have enough people to fill in the gaps in time of absents.
06/14/2012 at 11:57 am |
how can you hire employees when you are told repeatedly your budget has been slashed? How can you justify hiring when you are told repeatedly that your money is at a certain level? Please give me that crash course in Economics…..it must be a different course than has been taught in most Universities across America for the last say…100 years……
06/15/2012 at 9:52 am |
There are grants available to help towns and cities with problems like this. Is there anyone in the Jonesboro town office that can write grants? Certainly not the CTIC, unless he has figured out a way to divert the money elsewhere (like to his pockets).
06/15/2012 at 10:24 am |
Yes they gets lots of grant money….so of course there is a person writing grants.
Jonesboro airport is so nicely updated thanks to a hugh grant last year that Ms. Knox helped secure.
Jonesboro airport is important …look and see how much air traffic happens there.
I ain’t seen Ms. Knox in a while….maybe she is off helping other towns.
Biggest Granddaddy of grants gonna come just as soon as those new auditors get the clean audit done. Not sure why they are taking so long…this is the first municipality audit they have ever done….seems to me they could just breeze thru it with all the help from the Ms. Tonya Wade from Ruston. She shore gets paid enough that the audit trail should be clean enough to eat off of!
06/15/2012 at 10:27 am |
There are many grants available, but as long as your budget is screwed up and you can not get a clean audit, you CAN NOT receive grant money from new grants and you LOSE any existing grants that you have.
06/15/2012 at 11:00 am |
Remember, I keep telling you all ….EVERYTHING IS JUST FINE IN JONESBORO.
It is the new auditors and Tonya Wade’s fault if there is no clean audit this year.
We needs the grant moneys to keep the improvements our Mayor and Rev Dill have in store for our town!
06/15/2012 at 1:09 pm |
I, and thousands of others, do hope that one of the improvements that the CTIC and his Mr. Dill have is that they plan on resigning real soon. That would be beneficial to the town in more ways that you can imagine. Then, if they would move out of town, that would be like heaven heard our prayers and answered them.
06/16/2012 at 10:52 am |
I need to know Messy, along with other bloggers, if you have EVER heard of any conflict when other competent mayors were in office. Of course you have not, and neither did BR. And, neither have we, the bloggers, on this forum. All audits were in place and clean, no missing money, no unpaid water bills, and I could go on and on. Also, stop blaming Ms. Wade and the auditors. THEY did not create this mess. It was created solely by the inept mayor who is the laughing stock of all the other mayors in the state of LA.
It is beyond me how he can even hold his head up when he is in the presence of the mayors of LA which he will be very soon, if he attends the convention.
06/16/2012 at 12:51 pm |
Oh, I love how it is blamed on the previous staff saying that the reason that everything “seemed” fine before was because it wasn’t found, and that the good work of the current administration is why it is now “coming to light”. I have one thing to say, if that is what the current administration honestly believes, then they need to listen to the saying ” if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” It is ludacris saying that these problems came about due to former administration. Wake up people!
06/18/2012 at 3:01 pm |
You are right on. But, the current administration will always play the “blame” game regardless. And, they know this is not the case, but they do not care. It’s like the current administration in Washington always wanting to blame Bush for EVERYTHING. So what, maybe the current pres. did inherit a deficit, but holy cow, look at the deficit now. 15 trillion, isn’t it, but they say it is Bush’s fault.
Same scenario……blame, blame, blame!!!!
06/14/2012 at 4:50 pm |
Say what he wants, talk in circles until people start buying it, do what you want to do. The fact of the matter is, If there is no money, there is no police. Look at the numbers people, look at the numbers. The mayor wants cops,,but he wants the cops he hand picks. Just like he did the council and everything else in the town.
06/15/2012 at 7:49 am |
Just thinking…was Sam the only person’s whose packet was empty?
Did the Mayor’s trio of best buddies even speak up about their packet was empty?
Did the delivery of the agenda satisfy any legal meeting requirements?
06/15/2012 at 9:55 am |
I was thinking that it wouldn’t matter if the buddies of the mayor (ugh! I hate using that word to describe Leslie the Least.) because they are probably reading challenged.
06/15/2012 at 4:34 pm |
What exactly does Rev. Dil do? LOL!!!
06/15/2012 at 4:59 pm |
Not a whole lot! He walks around city hall and is a “gopher” for the mayor. Dresses nice and tries to talk like some kind of over pronouncing English teacher. I mean he, himself, testified to the Baton Rouge board, Quote: “I know nothing about the money!” Well, that is pretty much all the city hall does, is money matters! So, I guess he summed it up himself, did he not?
06/15/2012 at 5:30 pm |
I think he is the mayor’s handler….making him look and sound so good!
06/15/2012 at 9:31 pm |
Well, he must not be successful at it. The mayor still looks, acts, and talks like a bimbo.
06/15/2012 at 8:40 pm |
I love your Dil Do comment. From what I read in the newspapers and hear on the radio and TV, the town of Jonesboro is being run by a bunch of dildos and their batteries are running down.
06/18/2012 at 8:41 am |
Have a great week. Please remember ALL IS GREAT IN JONESBORO, ALL IS GREAT WITH OUR MAYOR AND HIS STAFF AND IS GREAT WITH THE GRANTS.
There are plenty of police in Jonesboro and there is no drugs or crime.
06/18/2012 at 11:01 am |
To Messy: There are not enough police officers to cover the town adequately and if you think things are great in Jonesboro, you ought to visit a town or city where the mayor is an effective tool of the people and not just for himself. The CTIC is a racist. Period! And if you believe for a nano second that there are no drugs in Jonesboro, you need to have your brain replaced with one that is capable of coherent thought and reasoning. You can get high just breathing the air at that market at the corner of Leon Drive and the Beech Springs Highway. Messy, do us all a favor and keep your misguided thoughts to yourself and don’t pollute the internet with shit like “the mayor is doing a good job.”
06/19/2012 at 6:41 am |
Yeah right, there are no drugs because you’ve used them all Messy!
06/18/2012 at 11:54 am |
this was the second sunday i drove by city hall and the parking lot was full of cars including the mayors car so i wonder what they are doing at city hall on sundays? are they useing it as a church? or are they haveing some kinda meeting? it just seems strange that they are there on sundays i think they are useing a town building for a church.
06/18/2012 at 1:32 pm |
That’s nothing new, he will start blaming the other Mayor’s.Saying they did it too
06/19/2012 at 7:04 am |
Maybe the Rev Dill is preaching and praying for the town….nothing wrong with having Church at the Town Hall.
06/18/2012 at 6:02 pm |
Have you people figured it out yet? Are you preparing? The only thing to stop this and fix our town is the election. To have one sole candidate to run against him, one! That is the only solution. Search Warrants, Grand juries, etc. etc. None of this did anything. Heck the legislative board down in Baton Rouge is now nothing more than a laughing stock! I hope they read this! Where is your Fiscal Administrator? It’s been how long now since they voted to appoint one? Lots of good that did huh? They are nothing more than the ” School principal”! The students get sent to the principal knowing that he can’t really do anything to them. They may get a lecture on how you need to improve or else, but as soon as the student is back in class it’s the same old routine! Well, the mayor and the board are the students, they travel to Baton Rouge to get their “lecture” and as soon as they get back to Jonesboro it’s the same old routine. No change! The board down there are not going to help! They would have already! I had big hopes in the fiscal administrator myself. Lots of good that did huh? Where is he/she???? Good job Baton Rouge!
06/19/2012 at 4:07 am |
i have to agree with you on that one!when is the next election anyway?
06/19/2012 at 6:52 am |
Nothing new gonna happen. The Mayor will be reelected and he will have a council that he wants. Dream on ….the folks with the votes will all come together for the Mayor.
All you messy folks will not come together cause you like to have it your way….like at Burger King
You all will just sit back and keep belly aching like right now.
06/19/2012 at 8:54 am |
You NEED alot of HELP “Messy”! Oh and “the folks with the votes”, are also the same one’s on Crack like YOUS!!!!
By the way, I don’t mind Burger King, just the service! That’s another reason “I” don’t like to shop at Jonesboro anymore! It is pitiful to see what YOU call ” all is good in Jonesboro”!
I wish You would just sit and smoke your drugs, have a coke, and shut the Hell up!!!
06/19/2012 at 9:32 am |
Now, now…God don’t like ugly….sorry to get you upset when I is just stating the truth about the happenings in Jonesboro.
Drive by on Sunday and just stop on it at the Town Hall ….have a little worship with your fellow towns people.
06/19/2012 at 9:58 am |
My Bible says to avoid evil. So, I think I for one will not be stopping by for worship with the CTIC and his entourage!!
06/19/2012 at 10:44 am |
“I” Agree!! Will not “Messy”, I have alot sence, and don’t start preaching God, God is where the Heart is, not the Pocket!! Dumba**!!
06/19/2012 at 3:54 pm |
Messy: To quote you…….”I is just stating the truth”. Didn’t you mean to say, “I am just stating the truth”?
06/19/2012 at 5:26 pm |
Now, now, Sunrisesunset, why did have to axe messy what he meant to say. Just axing!
06/19/2012 at 10:24 am |
I believe “Messy” is using satire to irritate people who have failed to vote, or they aren’t doing what he/she thinks should be done to remove the useless mayor-in-name-only from office. If that is the reason for your satire, I hope it works, “Messy”. .
06/21/2012 at 1:02 pm |
Satire…what is that about? Sounds like something the devil would be doing….I ain’t got no time for the devil for sure!
I just hope all you nice folks will understand THINGS ARE STILL GOOD….why you want to be so messy?
06/21/2012 at 8:30 pm |
You call us “nice folks” in one messge, then “Messy” in another. Make up your mind. The only ones you consider “nice” are the ones who agree with your foolish statements, and they are few and far between on this website.
06/22/2012 at 7:41 am |
There are still many, many nice folks in Jonesboro and even who read this website….they keep quite cause they know…ALL IS GOOD IN JONESBORO!
In your heart, all you messy folks know it is gonna be just fine at the town hall.
Remember, Mayor Thompson is gonna grow our Jonesboro…he promised to make our town a CITY…then we can have a City Hall.
He will…I know he will….the Honorable Jim Fannin is helping…he just been busy lately in Baton Rouge….Mr. Alexander still helping and we know he is really busy in Washington.
Just hang on to your hat, the ride will be fast and great!
06/22/2012 at 2:41 pm |
Messy, you are right about hanging on to our hats because the ride will be fast, but it certainly will not be “great” unless something changes drastically from the past several years.