Dead phone lines still cost county thousands

Two former phone service providers are continuing to charge county government thousands of dollars.

Nearly a year after the Putnam County Commissioners chose to switch to GigTel landline phones and eight months after previous phone plans were canceled with Metronet and Frontier, bills continue to arrive each month, with the county currently owing more than $5,000 between the two companies.

Calling the situation “an absolute fiasco,” Commissioner Rick Woodall briefed fellow commissioners Tom Helmer and David Berry on the situation during their Tuesday meeting.

“Each company keeps telling me that they have disconnected them and that it takes time to disconnect them,” Woodall said. “Here we are three months later, still getting billed.”

Specifically, in the most recent round of bills, Metronet charged $3,002,01, while Frontier charged $2,034.06.

While Frontier has not been paid since the service was shut off, the county has continued to pay Metronet, though not always at the full price charged. In the past two billing cycles calls to customer service said the final bill would arrive at a certain dollar amount. When it arrived, however, it was approximately twice that amount.

On the most recent invoice, the new charges totaled $1,716, more than half of the full bill.

Asked if he had gone in person to the local Metronet office, Woodall said it is of no help as it only serves residential customer needs, not business customers.

The commissioners made the decision to switch to GigTel, which is administered by Cloverdale-based Endeavor Communications, last October. The change came with upgraded technology, a five-year price lock and no maintenance fees.

At the time, GigTel submitted the only quote, with Metronet telling Woodall to figure out what the county needed in terms of an upgrade.

“I’m not going to do their job for them,” he said during the commissioners’ Oct. 3, 2022 meeting.

And so the three commissioners voted unanimously to go with GigTel, but the transition took a few months to come to fruition.

However, at this point all phones have been transitioned and county officials are tired of the ongoing bills for services they are no longer using.

Woodall even noted that a $1,400 disconnect fee was paid to Metronet at the time, yet additional bills still arrive.

“We’ve wasted thousands and thousands of taxpayer dollars to try and get these companies to shut off our phones,” Woodall said.

One step discussed Tuesday was to stop paying Metronet as well and see what happens, considering that services are not being rendered.

Before taking such a step, County Attorney Jim Ensley said he could write a certified letter to each company regarding the issue. Even if it does not get the bills to cease, it could later serve as proof that the county has tried to get the bills to stop.

Whatever the outcome, Woodall and his fellow commissioners are ready for the bills to stop.

“We’re literally paying thousands of dollars a month between the two of them,” Woodall said. “It’s absolutely ludicrous.”

In other business:

• The commissioners approved rezoning for the former clubhouse at Old Hickory Golf Course from Agriculture 1 to Commercial General.

The move had already been approved by the Putnam County Plan Commission.

“It kind of makes sense because it’s always been commercial,” County Planner Lisa Zeiner said, “but in 1992 it was zoned A1 and was never brought into conformity, so this brings it into conformity and allows for their plans.”

Zeiner said the plan by the current owners is to use the old clubhouse as a wedding venue, though there is also the possibility of installing storage units at the location.

She noted that the land on which the actual golf holes sit has a separate owner.

• The commissioners discussed updating policies for both county credit cards and out-of-state travel.

Originally, county credit cards were only supposed to be for travel. However, many vendors now require credit card payments rather than invoicing. As such, the policy either needs to be changed or county practice needs to change.

In terms of out-of-state travel, the county currently has no policy, so something needs to be written.

• Dave Wilborn, who performs weights and measures duties for the county, is planning to retire at year’s end.

While Wilborn has found someone he believes would be a good replacement, the commissioners need to decide what action they want to take moving forward.

This also includes the possible purchase of different equipment for the job, as Wilborn owns some of it himself.

The next meeting of the Putnam County Commissioners is set for 9 a.m. Monday, Sept. 18 at the Putnam County Courthouse.