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District Five Supervisor Gary Walker said supervisors decided to let the wildlife department's lease expire because they had no other options for relocating the tax office, and using the county-owned building will save money on renting a facility.
The wildlife department pays the county $500 per month to use the building, and the county pays $500 per month to use the Kees building across First Street for the tax office's mapping and appraising functions and for records storage.
Walker admitted, however, that he knew little about the condition of the building before voting to remove the wildlife department.
"I'll be honest - I haven't been in it in a few years," he said. "I ain't been in there since Wiley (Calcote) was sheriff in the front part of it."
What other supervisors knew about the building's condition remains unclear.
Board of Supervisors President the Rev. Jerry Wilson refused to comment on the situation when contacted Thursday. When speaking on the issue Wednesday, Wilson indicated how much renovation the building needs was not known.
"It's going to take some money to do it, though," Wilson said.
District Two Supervisor Bobby Watts and District Three Supervisor Nolan Williamson could not be reached for comment, and District Four Supervisor Doug Moak did not immediately respond to voice messages seeking comment.
The wildlife department - which has had its District Five office in Brookhaven for 12 years - is expected to move to an existing facility at Percy Quin State Park in McComb this fall, leaving behind what is shaping up to be a large renovation project for supervisors.
"It's a dated building," Holmes said. "Overall, the building is an old building and (supervisors are) going to have to rehab a lot of the interior to make it a usable space."
Lincoln County Tax Assessor Nancy Jordan predicted it could be another full year before her office is ready to move into the building, as no renovations can begin until after the wildlife department has moved on. Even then, she said the building is in worse shape than originally thought.
Jordan said wildlife department officials told her the building's roof leaks and pieces of plaster fall from the ceiling and collect on equipment. She is also concerned about whether the building has ample counter space, which her employees will need in order to meet and serve the public.
Additionally, Jordan said her computers would likely require new communication lines to be installed in the building.
"They've got their cart ahead of the horse," she said of supervisors. "What should have been done is they should have seen if it was feasible to fix it up for me before they asked the (department of) wildlife to leave."
Furthermore, locating the tax office into the Second Street office building would still leave Jordan's employees working in two locations.
She said plans call for the appraising, assessing and mapping offices to move into the wildlife department's current headquarters, while the collector's office would remain in the courthouse. The small courthouse offices may require renovation, too, she said.
Even if a plan to renovate the building comes together, paying for the project could be an issue. County officials requested federal assistance for the project during a recent trip to Washington, D.C., to meet with Mississippi's congressional delegation, but the request was not immediately granted.
County Administrator David Fields said the county could renovate the building piece-by-piece, moving portions of the tax office in as different segments of the building are repaired. But even that plan faces many questions, he said.
