Councilmembers for the City of Riceboro approved a pay increase for the Mayor Pro-Tempore, Pearlie Axson. She has been fulfilling the responsibilities of the office of Mayor since the passing of Joseph Harris, who died on Sept. 21, 2021.

 The pay increase is for the months of October through December. Prior to the vote, the Council had to vote to rescind a similar motion made at their previous meeting as it was not handled properly.

Councilmembers noted the pay increase would end in December because they plan to call a Special Called Meeting soon and appoint their new Mayor. This announcement drew ire from the public, many who stood up before the Council to say they weren’t given the ability to give their input and were left out of the process. They demanded to know the procedure for the selection process was, what was the deadline to apply and how many had applied for the position.

Councilmembers informed the public that proper notification was placed in the newspaper, the deadline was Dec. 2, and they had received two applications.

According to the procedures document, a copy of which was obtained by the Courier, all applicants who met the deadline will be interviewed by the Council during a regular or called meeting, open to the public. The order of the interviews will be determined by drawing the names. To be fair, only the person being interviewed will be in the meeting room. After the interview process each applicant will be given two minutes to speak. Afterwards Council may go into Executive Session to discuss qualifications, but must come out of Executive Session and vote on their choice in public forum.

Council reminded the public they had to appoint a Mayor because their current City charter does not have an authorized provision, approved by the state, to conduct special elections. Council said they would seek to amend the City Charter so they could hold special elections in the future.

The motion for the pay increase came from Councilwoman Louise Brown, who, at the same time, also requested the Council consider a motion to give $1,500 to Manna House to help them with their holiday food drives. However, no one seconded the motion and a vote on the matter for Manna House was never taken.

Since they plan to have a Mayor in place shortly, Council tabled a request to assist a homeowner with their water and sewer connection. The homeowner paid all of his connection and tap fees for his home off E.B. Cooper Highway but learned the City’s connection was a bit further away and his home was slightly out of the City boundaries. The homeowner asked if the City was willing to extend the line for connection and said the City has extended a similar courtesy to two other homeowners. Councilman John Young said they would need to find out the costs but it would be best to table the matter until their Mayor was in place. City Engineer Paul Simonton recommended the newly appointed Mayor and Council should prioritize water and sewer projects in anticipation of American Rescue Plan funds they expect to receive.

A petition was presented at the meeting from the public requesting Briar Road and Shell Road be annexed into the City limits.