(Shelby County, TN) Shelby County commissioners spent Saturday at a retreat hoping to gain a better understanding of what it means to work together.
This comes after months of high-emotion meeting while debating new issues.
Commissioners received getting tips from local experts on ways to stress reduction and team building.
Saturday’s retreat was organized by Commissioner Melvin Burgess who says that while disagreements may pop up from time to time, at the end of the day, the commissioners all want what’s best for Shelby County.
“It’s going to help us come together and ease tension. We just want Shelby County to know we are going to work as a team and get some of the issues resolved” said Burgess.
In the past several months, the commission meetings have made news not because of what the board accomplished, but because of high tension.
During a meeting earlier this month, Commissioner Henri Brooks said, “Please be advised, African-Americans are no longer considered three fifths of a person” and “The Civil War is over, y’all lost.”
Commissioner Sidney Chism says of the recent meetings, “It’s been more of a contentious atmosphere I have seen but that is to be expected because of the issues we’ve had to deal with.”
Those recent issues include the city-county school merger and redistricting.
Some commissioners are displeased with the amount of Democratic representation in the latest plans.
Commissioner Chism says, “My colleagues see it a bit different they want a map that represents suburban areas.”
Commissioner Heidi Shafer tells News Channel 3 the tension between commissioners is hurting Shelby County, “It’s an adversarial process. You are arguing both positions with hopes you will one day get in the middle. Sometimes you are on such adversarial sides, it’s hard to come to a compromise. I think we’ve been stuck for about two months.”
She’s hopes Saturday’s retreat will help the commission become unstuck as they work to move Shelby County forward.
