Jackson County Administrator Wilanne Daniels requested board approval on her recommendation of the hiring of Scotty Taylor as the Public Transportation Director for Jackson County. This position was reclassified from the County Road Superintendent and County Engineer. With the resignation of the county road and bridge superintendent and the upcoming retirement of county engineer Larry Alvarez, Daniels opted to combine those two positions to allow supervision to be under one roof.
In addressing the board, Daniels said this proved to be a better fit in that the county engineer was ultimately the decision maker for road and bridge maintenance. The board voted 5-0 for that change.
Taylor was introduced to the Board at the Tuesday night monthly meeting. He brings with him 15 years of experience managing multiple engineering and construction projects. Taylor has held various roles in operating heavy equipment machinery, as well as providing project management, engineering and design, supervision and leadership.
In an interview with Taylor, he said he was glad to be returning to Jackson County to work. He is originally from Blountstown but has called Cottondale home since he married his wife who is a Cottondale native. Taylor and his wife Lela have three grown children and three grandchildren. Their two daughters are educators in the Jackson County School system and their son is at FSU – Panama City pursuing his degree.
As far as what Taylor looks forward to in his new job, “I’m hoping we can get a grip on stabilizing some of these dirt roads and you know get a long-term plan so we know going forward we have a plan to fix the roads. Paving isn’t always the answer. We need to stabilize so that when we do have bad weather, we don’t have to patch them up every time.”
Taylor will begin his employment with Jackson County November 6.
