Newspaper Page Text
Page 16, May 20, 2019, The Islander
Injustice
I’ve got couple things to write about
this week, but I’m going to start with
this one about the Joint Water and
Sewer Commission (JWSC).
Please note the following is spec
ulation, perhaps educated or in
formed speculation, but speculation
nevertheless.
Up until the JWSC began hold
ing their meetings on Thursday mid
afternoons making it difficult for me
to also cover the Glynn County Com
mission meetings Thursday evenings,
I had covered the utility since the very
first meeting when the city and county
commissions got together to discuss
the idea.
I was there for it all from Tony
Sammons being the first non-elected,
citizen appointee, right up through all
three Executive Directors.
I think the first two, Keith Morgan
and Steve Swan, had their strengths
and weaknesses, but did what they felt
necessary to move the utility forward.
I think Morgan bore the worst of
it being the first director of a brand
new utility that nobody really had any
idea how to create or organize. It was
unique in the state of Georgia in that
it consisted of two city and two county
commissioners, who then appointed
the citizen member.
Morgan was truly a man serving
two masters, who had a long history of
not getting along with each other - the
city and the county commissions.
Swan had his own issues and paid
the price.
When they hired Alabaman Jimmy
Junkin I was immediately impressed.
He had both technical / scientific
and business degrees and was no doubt
well suited to run the organization.
Recently it was announced that he
was resigning and ever since everyone
has been very tight lipped about it.
Let the speculation begin -1 for one
don’t believe that Junkin resigned of
his own free will and accord, for one
stinking second.
I got fairly well acquainted with
Junkin and for him to “resign” right
out of the clear blue sky, after relocat
ing his family here from Alabama, I
just don’t buy it.
I believe it was, once again, Glynn
County politics as usual.
I believe that there were at least
four JWSC members who had indi
vidual personal grudges against him
and in their small minded pettiness
simply wanted him gone, so they gave
him the option to “resign,” in lieu of
being fired.
It happens all the time.
During last week’s City Commis
sion meeting, Commissioner Johnny
Cason, who represented the city com
mission on the JWSC while Junkin
was there, questioned the city’s cur
rent representative, Mayor Cornell
Harvey about the “resignation.”
The Mayor cited personnel con
fidentiality laws allowed under the
“SE” The Islander editorial
Georgia Open Records and Meetings
Act.
There’s been a fleeting mention of
Junkin’s letter of resignation, but so
far no one has produced a copy of it.
This is a sad and bad situation. An
extremely qualified, hard working,
honest man facing the monumental
task of trying to deal with over $100
million in projects to rehab a water
and sewer system that was allowed
to rot in the ground for decades, was
forced out for political and personal
reasons.
As if the injustice wasn’t bad
enough, I’m afraid it’s going to be diffi
cult to replace him with someone with
his dual qualifications.
For example, at one time Glynn
County’s Community Development
Department was down to one Plan
ner. That was it, they had no director,
no planning manager nor other plan
ners. I know at least one of them left
because they were disillusioned by the
job here. It took a very long time for
the County to find replacements.
Could it be, again this is more spec
ulation, that Glynn has a less than
stellar reputation as a place to work?
I’m guessing the water and sewer
business is, well, not huge, and if word
gets out that Junkin “resigned” with
out warning and no real appreciable
reason, it could limit the applicant
pool.
We’ll miss you Jimmy, Roll Tide.
The other thing I wanted to men
tion is a prediction on an entirely dif
ferent subject - American Idol®.
I predict Alejandro Aranda will win
it all tonight (May 19).
I didn’t start watching Idol® until
a couple years ago - it didn’t seem like
the kind of music I’d listen to and for
the most part it isn’t. But they have
had some very talented people on like
Haley Reinhart and Joshua Ledet
who did a blistering version of Bruno
Mars’s “Runaway Baby” and had the
potential to be the next Otis Redding.
This season has been fairly excep
tional with a great top six.
But Aranda is unlike anyone who
has ever been on the show, at least
since I’ve been watching.
He’s an accomplished songwriter
and regularly plays originals, some
thing the producers and judges urge
contestants to avoid like the plague,
but not this guy.
He finger-picked his way brilliant
ly through his first audition with an
original, and once on the show per
formed another of his own songs on
the piano combining classical and jazz
at times calling up images of Dave
Brubeck’s version of Paul Desmond’s
“Take Five.” It was stunning.
The thing about this show is, the
winners don’t always succeed, and the
also-rans don’t always fail.
Whatever the outcome tonight, I
think Alejandro Aranda has a future
so bright, he gon’ need some shades.
We Know
YOU’RE
READY.
but it’s never too early to start planning.
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ON ST. SIMONS ISLAND
136 Marsh’s Edge Lane • St. Simons Island, GA 31522
(912) 324-3028 • Marshs-Edge.com
til i.
