Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department will have some additional funding after county supervisors on Monday accepted three awarded grants for the law enforcement agency.

Sheriff Billy Sollie said his department had been awarded a DUI grant for $161,004 as well as an occupational protection grant for $45,135. Both grants are awarded annually, and LCSD applies for each of them every year.

The DUI grant will be used to pay for manpower, overtime and equipment, such as portable intoxilyzers and vehicles, to use in keeping impaired drivers off the roads.

The operational protection grant goes toward paying deputies, who are not on duty with the department, who will focus on catching seatbelt violations. Chief Deputy Ward Calhoun said the operational protection grant is a 50/50 grant, meaning LCSD will need to put up matching funds.

The third grant the sheriff’s department has been awarded is a Small, Rural and Tribal Body Worn Camera grant, which is used to purchase body cameras for law enforcement officers. Sollie said the grant will provide $24,795, which will be enough to buy 30 body cameras and the equipment needed to use them.

In total, Sollie said, the grants amount to almost $250,000 in outside funding for the sheriff’s department.

“These three grants right here bring in almost a quarter million dollars of tax money from the federal government to Lauderdale County,” he said. “My hat’s off to those responsible for putting these grants together.”

Q.V. Sykes Restrooms

In other business, the Board of Supervisors voted to move forward on a project to build restrooms out at Q.V. Sykes Park.

The park, which is partially owned by the county and partially by the City of Meridian, has one of the largest baseball facilities in the region and is frequently discussed as a site for potential traveling tournaments. The restrooms, which have also been throughly discussed for a number of years, are part of the tourism discussion.

County supervisors on Monday voted to accept a $151,000 bid from D&E Construction Company to carry out the restrooms’ construction. The funds for the project will come from the county’s allocation of American Rescue Plan Act money.

The county has discussed the possibility of deeding its portion of Q.V. Sykes over to the city to simplify management of the green space. County Administrator Chris Lafferty said the city was concerned about liability of the rental cabin on the county’s land, and demolishing the structure is a condition of the city accepting the additional responsibility.

Supervisor Joe Norwood, whose district includes Q.V. Sykes, has spoken against tearing down the cabin as it is used regularly by the community. He said he is interested in talking with the city further before making a decision.