Williamson, Inc. will continue to receive funding for its economic development staff in 2024 following a vote by the Williamson County commission that brought up several concerns about the contract for past funds.
In the May 13 County Commission meeting, several commissioners expressed concerns that Williamson, Inc. was receiving funds because there was no contract for 2023. County Mayor Rogers Anderson said, however, that because the county commission approved the use of those funds in the 2023 budget, there was no mishandling of the funding.
The previous contract had lapsed in 2022, but the county's legal advice was that because both parties were under the impression the contract was still valid the funds should still be distributed. The contract vote was deferred at that meeting for commissioners to get more information before the vote.
Several business owners spoke up at the meeting about the importance of funding for Williamson, Inc. Doug Kreulen, president and CEO of the Metro Nashville Airport Authority, said he is a resident of Franklin and has served on the board of Williamson, Inc. for the last six years.
“The hardest six years of my life has been building that airport," Kreulen said. "But also working with Williamson, Inc, you couldn't find a more professional organization that's focused on what's the best needs of Williamson County."
Tara Blue, co-chair of Black business coalition of Williamson, Inc. and executive director of the Community Child Care Center in Franklin, said he hoped the funding would continue so that local diverse businesses could get the help they needed.
“There's a lot of separation and a lot of minority businesses have experienced a lot discrimination in the past," Blue said. "We want to make sure these businesses are equipped and prepared to have a fair and resourceful opportunity to be competitive in this county and beyond. We are grateful for Matt and his staff. They have meant a lot to our businesses who are trying to make their lifelong dreams come true.”
Two citizens spoke to the county commission who were against the payments to Williamson, Inc. with one stating that it “represents a breach of fiduciary duties to county taxpayers.”
However, the Tennessee Comptroller’s office audit of Williamson County in 2023 found no issues with funding for economic development. There was only one finding in the audit and it dealt with bids for a roofing project. The audit did indicate the county does not have a central system of accounting, budgeting, and purchasing and suggested that the county should adopt such to cover all county departments.
In the contract presented to the commissioners, a letter from accounting company Bellenfant stated it has audited Williamson, Inc. each year including “reviewing compliance with revenue contracts” like the one from the county.
“We have never determined any misuse of the revenues received from the county,” the letter stated. It also notes there is a separate set of books for the economic development funds aside from other chamber operations.
Documents were also provided to commissioners that indicated the funds received from the county went to compensation, or pay, as it is intended to based on the contract.
The staff members of the Williamson, Inc. economic development arm include: Nathan Zipper, chief economic development officer; Anna Lisa Roberts, vice president of business development and investor relations; Claudia Zuazua, economic development coordinator; Nick Biniker, vice president of entrepreneurship and small business development; and Kel McDowell, vice president of government affairs and public partnership.
While the county pays $400,000 to the economic development arm of Williamson, Inc. under the contract, the county brought in more than $10 million in business taxes in the last year, which is up from $8.8 million in 2022. The county also received more than $8 million in hotel/motel taxes in 2023, up from $6.7 million in 2022.
When the contract was brought to the table for commissioners, an amendment that would require other local municipalities to provide a portion of the funding was presented by Commissioner Gregg Lawrence.
While many of the commissioners spoke in support of the idea, questions were raised about the funding those municipalities currently provide to Williamson, Inc. and how this might affect those funds. The amendment failed, having received 12 yes votes to 10 no votes; 13 votes are needed to pass, but commissioners suggested it was something they would like to revisit.
Due to many of the questions the amendment brought up, Commissioner Lisa Hayes made a motion to defer the contract again to a July 8 meeting with a second from commissioner Chris Richards. The motion to defer failed with eight yes votes and 14 no votes. Commissioners Hayes, Richards and Lawrence along with Mary Smith, Barb Sturgeon, Pete Stresser, Greg Sanford, and Drew Torres voted to defer.
After further discussion, with some commissioners indicating the need for continued work on the the contract, it was approved with 19 yes votes and three no votes from Sturgeon, Hayes and Richards. The contract lasts for one year as opposed to the former five-year contract.
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