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New contract for janitorial services at Justice Center begins this week Melodie Phelps News Editor Last week's meeting of Wayne County Fiscal Court brought in a large crowd of spectators, during a session that included the ongoing discussion of janitorial services at the Judicial Center as well as a walk-through tour of several areas of the building by county officials and officials from the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC). The audience spilled from the small, downstairs courtroom down the hall, as State Representative Ken Upchurch, as well as several AOC officials, talked with Judge-Executive Bruce Ramsey and members of the court last Thursday evening. Upchurch had been invited to attend the meeting by Ramsey after the February fiscal court meeting when magistrates learned that the AOC had solicited bids for janitorial services at the Judicial Center, a service that the county had been providing since the facility opened in April 2005. In February, Ramsey had referred to the actions of Upchurch, who had passed complaints he received about the uncleanliness of the Judicial Center on to AOC officials, as political. In a statement, Upchurch noted that his involvement came only after constituents, an attorney, and employees who worked at the new facility had talked to him about the problem. Upchurch said that he had forwarded those complaints on to the AOC. That's a fact that Upchurch reiterated last Thursday, as he addressed the fiscal court. "In early January of this year it was brought to my attention that there were some problems concerning the cleanliness of the Judicial Center," stated Upchurch. "That was my first knowledge that there were problems. Those concerns were brought to my attention by employees who work at the facility, an attorney and several citizens of Wayne County. As a result of these expressions of concern that were made to me in my capacity as State Representative, I simply forwarded those concerns to the AOC." In his statement to the court, Upchurch addressed an insinuation made by Ramsey in February that the AOC terminated the janitorial contract with the county because of pressure from the local legislator. "To be fair, the best face you can put on his accusation is that it is wrong and at its worst simply untrue," said Upchurch. He said that Ramsey was aware of the problem that the AOC had with the cleanliness at the Justice Center as early as last June, when the judge received a letter from Garlan Vanhook, who is Facilities General Manager. A copy of the letter, as well as a timeline of events that date back to the grand opening of the Judicial Center on April 28, 2005 was also presented to the court by Upchurch. In the letter Vanhook states that he was concerned to "find some unclean and neglected areas of the facility" when he visited there. "The tile and carpeted floors did not seem to be as clean as I would have expected," Vanhook states in the letter. "I understand that trash is not being emptied on a regular basis. The men's restrooms need to be kept cleaner than I found them that day." Vanhook requested that Ramsey and the court help improve these conditions over the next several months. The letter also included a copy of the AOC's maintenance standards. Ramsey stated during last week's meeting that he did not recall receiving the letter from Vanhook in June. Ramsey stated he first became aware of the problem when he met with Tim Christopher from the AOC on January 19, when the two men walked through the Judicial Center. Christopher's minutes from the meeting with Ramsey indicated that the County Judge asked him specifically who had complained about the cleanliness at the Judicial Center. Christopher said that he informed Ramsey if there was not improvement at the facility by March 1 that the AOC would solicit for janitorial services through the state bidding process. Christopher noted that Ramsey told him not to wait until March 1, but to go ahead and do it. Ramsey said last week that he did not recall making that statement. Also during the discussion, Ramsey questioned why the AOC had not had any other contact with him during that seven months after officials said they sent him a letter. Ramsey told the court that he had talked with several judges that have offices in the facility about the cleanliness of the building. He noted that District Judge Robyn Williams had complained about problems in her office, but said that janitorial workers did not have access to that area after hours. Ramsey indicated those problems were settled. Ramsey said that District Judge Mike Lawson and Circuit Judge Vernon Miniard had indicated to him that they had no problems with the cleanliness at the Judicial Center. Ramsey also replied to Upchurch's statement. "I feel like Ken has political motives behind this and I feel like it was sleazy politics," he stated. Melinda Wheeler, Director of the AOC, stated that the AOC wasn't playing "sleazy politics." Wheeler said that if anyone has a concern like this that the AOC checks out the concerns. Wheeler stated she was in the Judicial Center for the grand opening and walked through the facility, which she said was not clean. "This is something we have known since April of 2005," said Wheeler. Wheeler told the court that the AOC has bid for janitorial services at the facility. Bids were opened once, but the contract had to be re-advertised because of some specification changes. The meeting was adjourned, as Ramsey, two magistrates and several AOC officials toured through portions of the Judicial Center Thursday night. After returning to open session, Ramsey noted that the he believed the building was clean, but indicated that AOC officials had informed him that the new contract for janitorial services would begin on March 16. At that time, the two county employees who have been cleaning at the Judicial Center will lose their jobs. AOC officials indicated that the contract with the county for maintenance services, such as mowing, at the Judicial Center will continue. Ramsey recommended the court go into executive session briefly to discussion possible litigation. Last month, the court authorized Ramsey and County Attorney Lee Tobbe to pursue any action necessary against the AOC in regard to the memorandum of understanding for janitorial services. After the executive session, Ramsey said that any legal action against the AOC would have to be filed in Franklin County and that would likely not be favorable to the county. Ramsey requested that the court withdraw its previous motion to take any necessary action against the AOC. The motion was made and the action was approved. "I don't think we can win this battle," stated Ramsey. Following the meeting, Upchurch issued the following statement. "I appreciated the opportunity to come before the fiscal court and the public and state the facts about my involvement in the Judicial Center issue," said Upchurch. "As I said at Thursday night's meeting, I have an obligation to address constituent concerns and that is what I did in this instance. I will continue to do that." Add a comment |
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