Jackson County Commission Moves Forward with Endeavor Museum Building Repairs

By: Shelia Mader

In a sometimes pointed but largely collaborative discussion, the Jackson County Board of County Commissioners voted 3-1 at their July meeting to move forward with structural repairs to the historic "old cafeteria" building on the former Dozier School for Boys campus, intended to house the future Jackson County Endeavor Museum.

While the decision was ultimately limited to approving Monolith Construction as the low bidder for the building work, the discussion quickly expanded to deeper questions surrounding use of tax dollars, particularly bed tax funds, for the controversial museum project, and how the history of the county, including Dozier, should be told.

County Administrator Jim Dean began the discussion by noting that the project’s construction bid had come in over budget. The county has approximately $1 million available: $500,000 from a state grant and an estimated $500,000 from the county's Tourist Development Council (TDC) funds, which are sourced from the county’s five-cent bed tax. Dean laid out two options: cancel the project or approve it conditionally while conducting “value engineering” to bring costs within budget.

Commissioner Paul Donofro, who has been involved with the project planning, said he was confident the county could eliminate some scope and still complete core repairs, like roof replacement and concrete remediation, within available funds.

Commissioner Donnie Branch raised pointed questions about the museum’s purpose, content, and especially the use of what he characterized as local taxpayer money. “I have a problem with people telling me they have a problem with spending Jackson County tax money on that,” Branch said. “And if the state wanted to do that, that would be one thing. We're in the middle of the budget right now and I can't agree to take that tax money that we're overseeing and use it on something that we may not even like.”

Dean clarified that the money in question was bed tax revenue, technically tax dollars collected from out-of-county visitors staying in local lodging. “Yes, it is Jackson County dollars,” Dean said, “but it’s dollars that we got from people on the interstate. It’s not like we’re paying ad valorem taxes.”

Branch acknowledged the distinction but stood his ground. “We accrue it here. It's bed tax money, yes,” he said, indicating that since the revenue is administered by the county, its use still falls under local scrutiny.

Branch’s concerns extended beyond funding. He questioned whether the museum might portray a narrative that residents don't support, particularly regarding the legacy of the Dozier School for Boys. “I just want whatever's promoted out there to be truly what it was back then, whether it's from Dozier or agriculture,” he said.

Kelsey Jackson, who oversees the museum initiative, offered reassurances. She detailed plans to host six public workshops throughout the county to gather input and artifacts from residents. She also emphasized the museum committee’s goal to present a well-rounded and historically contextualized account of Jackson County, including the Dozier story.

“There will be a core exhibit space dedicated towards Dozier,” Jackson said. “But the large majority of the space will be dedicated towards Jackson County history, agricultural, military, ecological, and notable people and places.”

Regarding past investigations and controversial findings at Dozier, Jackson said, “We will include resources from all sources available, including that study, but we’ll also conduct one-on-one interviews with various attendees, including voices not often heard.”

Branch remained skeptical. “Is this what we’re voting on today? I’d rather hear what the people in the county say about it at these workshops before I vote on it,” he said.

Dean clarified that the vote on the table was only to approve funding for the building shell, not the museum's content. “There is a time aspect to this,” Dean noted. “The $500,000 grant from the Secretary of State’s office has to be spent prior to December 31st.”

Jackson assured the board that the museum’s master plan and exhibit list remain fluid and will reflect community input. “If there are elements that do not align with what y’all feel are your constituents’ desires, we can change that.”

Chairman Jamey Westbrook added a philosophical note. “We do have some history here, sometimes we’re not quite as proud of. But how that’s prepared will make one heck of a difference,” he said. “And whether the money comes from Timbuktu or Maryland, it’s still accrued right here in Jackson County.”

Commissioner Edward Crutchfield emphasized that the current action was strictly about preservation. “We’re not putting the museum in right now,” he said. “We're just preserving the building. And we got a grant to do that. If we don't, you gotta turn that money back, which may hurt us in trying to get more funding later.”

Donofro reinforced that point, “All we're doing is basically approving Monolith as the low bidder so that we can look at this bid and scale it down to a point we can afford. At this point in time, we’re not deciding what's going to go into the building at all.”

Commissioner Crutchfield made a motion to approve the award to Monolith Construction, seconded by Commissioner Willie Spires. Donofro recused himself due to his involvement in the project’s design. The motion passed 3-1, with Branch opposing.

The commission agreed that project staff will return to a future meeting with updated construction scope and cost after engineering review. Until then, the building repair phase moves forward, though the debate over how best to tell Jackson County’s story is far from over.