City Hall — Changing of the Guard

Changing of the Guard

By Ed Reynolds

Outgoing Birmingham City Councilor Elias Hendricks went down swinging November 15 as the Council delayed a resolution backed by Mayor Bernard Kincaid regarding the annual Fall Carnival and Spring Fling fairs held at the Fairgrounds. Hendricks lost a bitter runoff to former Council president and one-time interim mayor William Bell by less than 200 votes several weeks ago. With the possible exception of Joel Montgomery, Hendricks was the councilor most prone to butt heads with Mayor Kincaid. Touting the carnival issue as his “last official act as chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee,” the councilor seemed to relish one final staredown with the mayor’s office.

Mid America Shows, Inc., which manages the two carnivals held at the Fairgrounds each year, is seeking to merge with another midway provider, Mid America Shows Delaware, Inc. The resolution does not affect the terms of the contract with the city and only changes the name on the contract to that of the new vendor. Hendricks, who often complained about difficulties getting information on a timely basis from the Mayor’s office, claimed that requested information on the fairs’ financial status had not been delivered. The councilor said carnivals must be financially viable. “Doing things that you did in the past without any regard to what the financial burden of the subsidy puts on the general public is not the way to go,” said Hendricks.

“The Spring Fling comes closer to breaking even . . . It’s more costly to conduct the fall fair,” Terry Burney of the Mayor’s office told the Council. He agreed with councilors that the Fall Carnival was being subsidized, prompting Kincaid to grow agitated. “[The fair] wasn’t designed to be a big profit-making entity!” said Kincaid. “It provides services for our citizens.” The city’s current contract with Mid America runs through 2007. Carnivals at the state fairgrounds in Five Points West have been poorly attended for years, much to Councilor Carole Smitherman’s dismay. “There are always more police at the fair than people,” noted Smitherman. “So I want to make sure that we actually made some money before we go into another contract with an unknown principle.” Mayor Kincaid again got irritated, replying, “I think it’s a good thing having the police officers there. It allays the fears of people coming [to the fair].”

 

I went from Dreamland Barbecue to the dream job”The meeting ended with departing Council President Lee Loder lavishing praise upon each councilor. “It has been a wonder to serve with you,” Loder said to Councilor Montgomery. To Councilor Gwen Sykes: “You are to be commended for your work and your savvy style.” The pontification had only begun. For the next 45 minutes councilors saluted one another ad nauseam. Councilor Smitherman said she has been thrilled to sit next to Elias Hendricks on the council dais due to his gentlemanly manners, including pulling out her chair whenever she sat down. “If he had some mints, he’d offer me one,” Smitherman explained. “We just had a bond between us.” Departing Councilor Bert Miller, who has never wasted an opportunity to grandstand, embraced his last hurrah.

“I went from Dreamland [Barbecue, where he waited tables] to the dream job,” said Miller, who decided against seeking re-election after controversy arose regarding $25,000 he secured for a concert that never happened. Miller, who filed for bankruptcy approximately one year ago, readily admitted he was somewhat lazy on the job. “I can admit I didn’t read a lot of stuff,” said Miller.

“Didn’t care about all the meetings. But I did care about the people of Birmingham.” The councilor added that he will be writing a book called My Time at the Hall.The pre-inaugural party the night before the new City Council was sworn in was sparsely attended. Among the highlights were the ice sculpture molded after the official Birmingham city seal and the name of one of the evening’s scheduled performers: Epiphany Cherry. Birmingham-Southern Chancellor Dr. Neal Berte gave the featured speech, admonishing councilors to work in cooperation. Mayor Kincaid and his former nemesis, newly elected Councilor William Bell, embraced, eliciting a roar from those in attendance. The next morning, a woman snuck a cowbell into the Council chambers, which she rang with gusto as William Bell was sworn in. Half an hour later, the new City Council convened to elect a council president.

Carole Smitherman won unopposed [it was speculated that Bell would challenge her]. Freshman Councilor Miriam Witherspoon was elected president pro tem over Valerie Abbott, who voted for Witherspoon because she could “see the handwriting on the wall” as councilors’ votes sided with Witherspoon. Perhaps Abbott was atoning for her near-unpardonable sin four years ago when she and Joel Montgomery supported Gwen Sykes for Council president. Carole Smitherman immediately made a power grab: she combined the Finance and Budget, and Administration committees into one committee, then appointed herself to chair the new committee. Later that morning during the Council meeting, Smitherman pledged her loyalty to the Mayor, a pledge she’ll no doubt break in two years when she challenges Kincaid in the mayoral election as she did two years ago.

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