Spalding County Manager William Wilson Jr. has found a lot of support in the community.

At a contentious meeting on Sept. 29, the Spalding County Board of Commissioners voted 3-2 not to renew his contract. That gave the county 45 days to negotiate a new contract with Wilson.

“First of all, I understand what a county manager-county commissioner form of government is,” said retired Lt. Col. Allan Imes. “I studied it for my graduate degree.”

Imes said he has not been keeping up with the exact details of what is going on, but he thinks someone is trying to prevent Wilson from doing his job according to its specifications.

“I’m probably like most of the people in the city and county,” he said. “We’re kind of sick of the garbage going on in the government.”

He said there seems to be a lot of turmoil and most residents hope that the matter will be quickly sorted out.

“From what I am hearing, not really sure, but some commissioners don’t want him in,” said Otis Paige, who works at the Taylor Street McDonald’s. “I think they should give him another chance.”

He said he does not think Wilson has done anything wrong.

The Rev. Kevin LoBello, senior pastor at Griffin First United Methodist Church, where Wilson is a member, defended him.

“I think that it would be a shame and a tragedy for this community if they didn’t renew his contract,” he said.

He said he has served at many churches in many small towns and knows how important the county manager is.

“William loves this community,” he said. “One of his greatest strengths is his love of the people, his love of the community here in Griffin.”

Although most of those interviewed took Wilson’s side, some did not.

Stephen J. Tarpley said he has had some friction with Wilson in the past due to a lack of progress on paving the dirt road where he lives. He said he has nothing personal against Wilson but he does not want the commissioners to renew Wilson’s contract.

“Personally, I would like to see them go in a different direction,” he said.

He said the county commissioners were elected by the people of Spalding County and he trusts their judgment.

“There’s a lot of people in the community that’ve got very mixed emotions,” said John Dugdale, who lives in the Ringgold community.

He said Wilson is an upstanding man from a well-established family in the county. However, many people in Dugdale’s part of the county believe Wilson’s decisions favor the city of Griffin, he said. Dugdale said Wilson supports, or seems to support, moving Georgia Highway 155 to McDonough Road and relocating the airport into the eastern part of the county.

Griffin-Spalding Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Bonnie Pfrogner said she hopes the situation can be resolved.

“I hope that they can resolve their differences and then we’ll move forward, taking care of the county’s business and what’s in the best interests of the citizens of this county,” she said.

She said the county manager and the members of the Board of Commissioners have both been supportive of the Chamber of Commerce. One member of the county Board of Commissioners sits on the chamber’s board of directors, votes on chamber matters and gives reports. The county manager also is invited to attend meetings and give reports.