By Josh Mitchell
Corinth Today News Editor
An Alcorn County supervisor said Monday that the road conditions in a portion of his district are the worst they have been in his lifetime.
County supervisors said they would like to do some roadwork but have been hampered by budget problems plaguing the county.
For instance, funding related to 911 and solid waste have been ongoing problems for the county, officials said.
“All I can say is at the end of the fiscal year we’re going to be in about the same shape we were in at the end of last fiscal year,” said Chancery Clerk Greg Younger.
The board of supervisors held a work session Monday to discuss budget problems.
District 4 Supervisor Steve Glidewell said the roads in his district have “deteriorated to an embarrassing level on the west side of 45 highway.”
He just took office in January for his first term and plans to improve the conditions. But he realizes that the county is facing budget problems.
“We hope we can get some funding freed up this year, but I wouldn’t make any promises,” Glidewell said. “We’ll just have to see how this budget year plays out.”
Likewise, District 3 Supervisor Tim Mitchell said he wants to do some roadwork in his district.
“We’re sitting here giving this county away, and my constituents didn’t elect me to do this,” Mitchell said. “I’m serious I want to do some roadwork.”
Mitchell added that he has been a good steward of the taxpayers’ money and is tired of not being able to make some improvements in his district.
Board of Supervisors President Jimmy Tate Waldon, said, “I think all five of us are in agreement that we want our portion. I’ve been holding off on mine because of the restraints.”
Waldon said he has also been a good steward of the taxpayers’ money.
“I don’t know what the answer to it is,” Waldon said. “But I do want us in agreement on how we do that.”
Glidewell said he does not travel much in District 1 but said the conditions in the other three districts are better than they were 10 years ago.
“I can tell you that the fourth district is, and you know this yourself, is in worse shape than it has been in my lifetime— no doubt,” Glidewell said. “Your worst road is an interstate compared to the majority of mine.”
In fact, Glidewell told Corinth Today that there are some roads in his district that the citizens consider “dangerous” to drive their cars across.
County Road 510 in his district is likely considered to be one of the worst roads in North Mississippi, he added.
“We’ve got the top two lowest rated bridges in Alcorn County in my district as well,” Glidewell said.
It will require several years worth of funding to make the improvements he wants to make, Glidewell noted.
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