The Greene County Democrat

Tag: County Attorney

  • County Commission demands removal of derailed train cars near County Rd. 107

    The Greene County Commission has recently received a response from Alabama & Gulf Coast Railway, LL (AGR) following repeated inquiries concerning the train derailment that occurred on March 21, 2025 near Greene County Road 107. After six months and reportedly numerous attempts by the county’s engineer’s office the derailed train cars had not been removed.

    On September 25, 2025, County Attorney, Mark Parnell, on behalf of the Commission, submitted a communication to Alabama & Gulf Coast Railway citing the derailed railcars are obstructing the right-of-way and posing public safety, environmental and infrastructure risks and required the following of the Alabama & Gulf Coast Railway: “AGR and/or its contractors and insurers are the responsible parties for removal, remediation and all damages arising from the incident. Demand is nearby made that, within 48 hours, AGR mobilize appropriate crews and equipment to remove all derailed rolling stock, debris and spilled materials from the right-of-way and adjacent areas and provide the contact information for your on-scene incident commander and slain lead.”

    On September 26, 2025, a representative of AGR communicated that the process of removal of the railcars is the responsibility of a third party and the process has begun.

    Commissioner Roshanda Summerville, who represents District 5 where the trainer derailment occurred, remarked that the county has been working diligently to expedite the clean-up. “We are very concerned about school buses and other motorists that travel that route crossing the tracks daily. We need an immediate cleanup process,” she said.

     

  • Newswire : Commission appoints 3 of 5 members of Greenethumb Improvement Board

    The Greene County Commission met for its regular second Monday of the month meeting. All members of the Commission were present. The meeting was opened by Garria Spencer, Chairperson, a prayer was given, the previous minutes and agenda were approved as submitted.
    The Commission voted to approve documents concerning the Purdue Pharmacy and Sacker Family Bankruptcy for a payment in litigation over opioid abuse by the company. The Commission voted to authorize the Chairperson to sign the documents.
    The Commission approved a recommendation from the County Engineer to zip up County Road 136, a short road south of Boligee, which is no longer in use. The paved road will be made into a gravel road to save on maintenance costs.
    The Commission agreed that its current lease agreement with Mr. Gomez of Iron Wolf Media LLC, for repairs and use of the former Greenetrack facility will stand as submitted to the company. The Commission owns the facility. They have held several meetings with Gomez, mostly in Executive Session, concerning amendments and changes to the 15-year lease, with 5-year renewals. Commission Chair Spencer said, ”We have negotiated a solid agreement with Iron Wolf. We and our attorney reached agreement with the company on certain changes, which they now want to revise again. Our position now is they accept the lease as negotiated or move on to another location.”
    The Commission appointed three of the five members of the “Greenethumb Farmers’ Initiative Improvement District Board, to help secure additional financing for a medical marijuana raising project, licensed to George Poindexter, a Black entrepreneur, who has begun operations in the northern part of the county. Sandra Walker was appointed for District 1, McDaniel Garner for District 4 and Kashaya Cockrell for District 5. The Commissioners for Districts 2 and 3 were not ready yet to make appointments. The new board will be installed and instructed by County Attorney, Mike Parnell, as to their duties and responsibilities in the near future.
    A financial report was submitted by Brenda Burke, which shows a total of $ 10,208,675 in funds in banks. In Citizens Trust Bank has $4,608,845 in restricted funds and $1,204,745 in unrestricted funds in the county’s General Fund. Merchants and Farmers Bank, has $2,726,113 in restricted funds and $1,768,971 in unrestricted funds, which are Bingo funds in a General Fund account. The County also has $1,901,066 in Certificates of Deposit in several banks as an investment reserve.
    During the month of August 2025, the County paid out $1,346,098 in claims plus $191,254 in electronic claims for a total of $1,537,352 for payroll, materials, ongoing road projects and a contract with Rebasco Decorators to repairs the flooring in the William M. Branch County Courthouse.