Clayton County’s newly elected top leader is wasting no time in suggesting changes in how the county is run.
On Wednesday, the board of commissioners — led by new chairman Jeff Turner — will take up a hefty list of agenda items that, if passed, will essentially transform Clayton’s current management structure. Among the 24 items on the agenda: getting rid of the county manager position, adding a chief financial officer and chief operating officer and calling for a forensic audit of county finances. The board also plans to designate a vice-chair during Wednesday’s meeting.
“We’re looking at changing the direction and vision of the county. To accomplish that, change is necessary,” said Turner, a former Clayton police chief who replaces Eldrin Bell as head of Clayton County. “I wouldn’t say they’re radical items, but it corresponds with a change in leadership.”
It will be the first commission meeting for Turner and Shana Rooks, an attorney who replaces Wole Ralph on the five-member commission. Both were swept into office as part of an anti-incumbency wave last year that could lead to a major reshaping of Clayton’s government, including the school board.
“When you have changes of elected officials, it’s not unusual for them to look at the management structure the county has in place and possibly make changes,” said Beth Brown, spokesperson for Atlanta-based Association County Commissioners of Georgia. “We always caution them to get in and learn about the county operations and what’s going on before taking action. Some choose to do it sooner.”
Right now, it is unclear how much the chief financial officer or chief operating officer would be paid or to whom they’d report.
“It’s the board’s right to decide how they want to go forward,” County Manager Wade Starr said Monday. If he’s let go, Starr would still get the remainder of his employment contract, which would be about $90,000. Starr has been county manager since September 2011.
Like other newly elected officials in Georgia, Turner and Rooks participated in December in mandatory state training for their new office.
Wednesday’s meeting also could get heated as the board takes up the proposal to change the name of a yet-to-open recreation center from Wole Ralph Recreation Center to Lovejoy Recreation Center. Some don’t understand why the name change has been proposed.
“We want to understand why they want to change it,” Clayton County NAACP president Synamon Baldwin said Monday. “Clearly, they have no history of how the building or centers came about.” Baldwin, who plans to attend Wednesday’s meeting, said Ralph worked hard to get the recreation centers built in the county.
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