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‘The Town Is At Great Risk’ Century Mayor Says After Council Again Refuses Gas Department Hire
April 17, 2025
The Century Town Council has again refused to hire an employee recommended by the interim mayor for the town gas department.
Billy J. “BJ” Johnson applied March 12 for a position described as “gas department employee” in the town’s natural gas department, where he previously worked for about a decade. Interim Mayor Alicia Johnson requested permission to rehire him, saying that he holds several needed certifications. The town charter requires the council to approve all hires by the mayor. Earlier this month, the council denied her request because they felt the position was not properly advertised.
The interim mayor made her request against this week, but a motion from council member Shelisa McCall died without a second, despite the position being advertised with no applicants other than Billy Johnson.
“I would strongly recommend that y’all consider the ramifications if you do not fill this position,” she said. “We don’t have an option whether we follow regulations or not; we have to follow state regulations.”
Johnson’s term as interim mayor will end when newly re-elected mayor Ben Boutwell takes office on May 9, but she says she will ask again to hire someone for the gas department.
“I have one more council meeting, and I will bring the council any qualified applicants that we have,” she said. “I will bring this one (Billy Johnson) back, but I do want to say to you as the town council that if we were to have a major gas explosion, we as a governing body are going to be held responsible for any accidents, that kind of thing.”
If the town cannot attract qualified applicants, Johnson said it may be advantageous to hire a contractor to fill the void in the gas department.
“It is imperative, I cannot stress enough, the town is at great risk if we do not cover our regulatory bases.,” she concluded.
NorthEscambi.com photos, click to enlarge.
Comments
15 Responses to “‘The Town Is At Great Risk’ Century Mayor Says After Council Again Refuses Gas Department Hire”
CONSIDERING:
“we need to have districts. It is definitely not appropriate for all council members to live in the same neighborhood, go to the same church and literally belong to the same family. That is certainly not fair representation of the town.”
Citizens of Century can do as they please, but I feel obligated to point out it’s already hard to find folks willing to attempt the thankless task. Collapse is a foreseeable result.
Century is also not so wide flung that folks throughout aren’t pretty much the same with different interests in one part versus another.
Finally, if members of the same family are willing to serve and the voters are okay with them, that should be their decision.
Not my dog, just some points to ponder.
What we need is two fold. First, we need to have districts. It is definitely not appropriate for all council members to live in the same neighborhood, go to the same church and literally belong to the same family. That is certainly not fair representation of the town. Second,
we need more citizens to be involved and interested in what is happening here. Whether you realize it or not, if you live here these people are making decisions that affect your home values, your finances, even your health and safety. Pay attention and stop expecting change if you aren’t willing to make a change!
Hopefully soon to be Governor Donalds will clean up this county from top to bottom and rid it of incompetence and corruption . Desantis hasn’t cracked the nut yet .
Nice to see Mr Brown relaxed and handling business.
Wonder why he hasn’t injected someone for the position ?
Let’s start focusing how to get rid of this entire council and get some new fresh new minds on board! Out with the old! In with the New! Let’s make it happen!
Hire him anyway Mayor. What are they gonna do? Remove you?
Veto
Override.
Pass the baton.
Next.
Yet State Attorney and State rep do nothing to hold them accountable. At least not yet.
Does any body read the news? They had to evacuate A NURSING HOME and fix a leak in Pensacola. Sound like a similar situation could unfold here yet these four council members are on their butts shoving papers around with their glasses on their noses –pretending.
They aren’t subject to the public service commission, they signed up for leadership and are accountable and running a gas utility quite frankly illegally.
Here’s your sign.
Where has safety and common sense gone in the township of Century. Who is going to be called when the enviable has leak occurs; and sooner or later it will. The town council is now playing with the very lives of this community by refusing to hire someone who obviously is capable of doing the job. All this going on seems to a power struggle within the members and it must have an end to it. My opinion is that the State of Florida needs to step in and set some things straight for a change.
They want to discrimate and hire a local bro or cuz — qualifications be ignored. However BJ was the one employed letting gas go out unmetered.
The Grand Jury recommending having Pensacola Energy take over way back.
In fact the gas franchise area was renegotiated with the county and the city attorney with a former mayor intow, to facilitate the peaceful negotiation with Pensacola Enegy several years ago. And yet here we are.
I think the term the major could used is “malfeasance.”
The only reason they would do this is if they have a friend or family member that they want to give this position to. Happens all the time in government offices and corporations.
Something is wrong with these council members. You can no longer write their decision making skills off as incompetence – it goes deeper than that
‘The Town Is At Great Risk’
Understatement of the Century – no pun intended.
If someone were to write a book about Century leadership or lack of leadership in this case, it would be listed as fiction because no one would believe it could be true.
Well who is surprised that this council doesn’t care what’s in the towns best interest? It’s always about their personal feelings and predudices.
Y’all are a joke as a town council wish there was a way escambia county would take it over kick all of u out this town would be so much better