Highlands Mayor Patrick Taylor is usually a mild-mannered guy.
Known for his even keel approach to all kinds of town-related matters, Taylor has built a reputation as a guy who doesn’t lose his cool.
That’s why it was surprising on Thursday afternoon during the Highlands Board of Commissioners Budget Session when Taylor got a little hot under the collar.
“Hold on, I will be the one to say this, and the media can quote me,” Taylor said. “If our school expansion project is indefinitely on hold, and now we are having our sheriff’s department coverage cut back, the question becomes ‘What in the heck are we paying county taxes for?’ We provide a majority of Macon County’s property tax revenue.”
It’s easy to understand Taylor’s frustration with a little background on what led to his very forthright comments.
During the board’s budget work session, the discussion of an employee pay study was raised by town manager Josh Ward. The idea for the pay study is to see how Highlands ranks among peer municipalities and private employers in terms of pay, and adjust the town’s salary structure accordingly to remain competitive.
Two departments Ward pointed out in particular were Highlands Police Department and the town’s electric utility. Police chief Andrea Holland noted that her department is currently short-staffed, and her officers are being asked to do more than ever because of a lack of sheriff’s department coverage in the outlying areas beyond Highlands’ limits.
Holland noted that Highlands has traditionally always had two patrol officers on shift (24/7) and also the aid of one sheriff’s deputy for calls outside the town. That deputy position has been reduced to only covering Highlands and the surrounding area half the time.
As Holland put it, Highlands is now in the same situation as Nantahala when it comes to having a MCSO deputy available to respond to emergencies.
Holland noted that discussions are ongoing related to the deputy coverage for Highlands, and she was hopeful things would return to their traditional schedule. Let’s hope she’s correct, because there is too much ground to cover from Scaly Mountain, to the Jackson County line, down to Cullasaja, for the Highlands PD to try to take on.