A motion was passed two weeks ago approving the placing of a monument on the Courthouse grounds recognizing all of the first responders who helped following the February 5 tornadoes, and memorializing the people who lost their lives in the natural disaster.

That motion was rescinded Monday night due to a late request from Jett Williams' husband and attorney Keith Atkins requiring that the "Jett Williams Tornado Relief Concert" be recognized for funding the placing of the memorial stone.

County Mayor Shelvy Linville apologized to the commissioners, explaining that his first understanding was that no such "advertisement" would be placed on the monument.

"The commission went down this road before three years ago," said Linville, referring to a monument recognizing our local National Guard's service in the first Persian Gulf War and in the current Iraq war which a local newspaper wished to place on the Courthouse grounds, with the name of the paper chiseled in stone at the base of the monument.

That monument was eventually placed on the Lafayette National Guard Armory grounds after much controversy and acrimony.

"We don't want to go down that road again," agreed Commissioner Tony Boles, and the original motion passed on July 7 was rescinded on a motion by Scott Gammons, seconded by Larry Tucker.

The commissioners then re-passed the motion with two changes: a monument, measuring four to five feet high by 2.5 feet wide, and costing $3,000 at most will be erected with the acceptance of private donations and with county funds if needed; and the name of the five individuals who died in incidents connected to the tornado disaster, i.e. inducing the four members of the Pastor Michael Welch family, would be added to the fourteen who died from the direct impact of the storms.

In other business:

*Commissioners accepted the federal Conservation Service grant to clean up an additional nine sites of remaining tornado debris which clog waterways at a total cost of $552,250, with the county to pay 10 percent, or $55,225 toward the project.

The motion to accept the proposal, made by Jerry Ray, seconded by Vernon Biggs, would clear trees and debris on 50-ft. on each side of creeks and streams, and 200-ft. on either side if there were any wind-blown hazardous housing debris.

The commissioners had first rejected this proposal two months ago, but at their last meeting several commissioners, including Bartley and Ray, noted that they had misunderstood the first proposal, believing it would only widen the areas already cleared of debris in the creeks.

Conservation Service conservationists Phillip Dixon and Jeff Young explained on July 7 that 7-8 additional sites, later expanded to include nine new sites, would be cleared of debris by the project.

The following sites are included in the clean-up: The first tributary north of York Branch; Long Branch Creek next to Pumpkintown; the tributary to White Oak Creek south of Swindle and Tucker roads; White Oak Creek east of Cook Cemetery Road; tributary west of Cave Hollow; tributary off Akersville Road; tributary off of Williams Road; Griggs Road at Mooningham Branch; and area of Honey Branch.

Five commissioners voted against accepting the federal, 90/10 percent matching grant: Tucker, Looper, Malo, Bransford and Snow.

*A Hotel/Motel tax of 5 percent was passed on first reading, after some discussion as to whether the Red Boiling Springs hotels had been consulted on the county's 3-Star Committee proposal to raise funds to promote tourism to Macon County.

But most all of the commissioners disagreed with Commissioner Phillip Snow, who cast the only "no" vote, with County Mayor Shelvy Linville noting that this was not a tax that Macon countians would have to pay, and that 2-percent of the 5-cent tax would be returned to the hotel/motel owners for collecting the small tax. The remaining amount would be devoted to tourism promotion.

The measure must be approved on a second reading in August, and would then be sent to the state legislature for approval in January, 2009.

*The cost of adding the new Senior Citizens Center building (formerly the Sears building on Hwy. 52-east) to the county's insurance policy will not cost the county anything this year, due to it being added after July 1, Mayor Linville informed the commissioners. The commissioners did approve paying the estimated $500 in additional insurance cost in the following year.

*Judicial Commissioner Ralph Meeks asked the commissioners to increase his re-reimbursement by $12 per day due to the cost of fuel taking as much as a third of his current reimbursement of $37 per day to make three to five trips out to the Justice Center (in the evenings when the Circuit Court Clerk's office is closed) to write warrants for county and city officers.

Meeks asked if the county could require the two cities to hire their own, after-hours warrants officer, as about half of the warrants he writes are for persons charged by Lafayette or Red Boiling Springs officers.

County attorney Guy Holliman noted that Meeks writes warrants only on state offenses, and the county does collect fines through the Circuit Court Clerk's office if there is a conviction.

However, the mayor and commissioners asked Holliman to "look into" requiring or asking the cities to provide their own warrant officers and to report back to them next month.

The county commission will meet a the "committee of the whole" on the first Monday night in August, at 7 p.m. in the upstairs courtroom of the Macon County Courthouse.