The Arnold Line Water Association in Hattiesburg, which has been fraught with customer complaints and rule violations during the last year and a half, now has a new lease on life.
Last Thursday, Southern District Public Service Commissioner Sam Britton announced new leadership for the member-owned water association, which stepped up immediately.
James Bennett will serve as president of the Arnold Line board, while Tyler Smith and Phillip Orton were elected as new board members. Bennett has also hired Dewitt Carney as manager to oversee day-to-day operations. Bennett replaces C.R. Dixon, who resigned.
“Today is not a day to look at the past, but to look forward,” Britton said. “There have been many issues with Arnold Line through the years, but with the changes that have occurred in the last few days, I believe a new era has come to Arnold Line.” The PSC filed changes to the association in October 2016.
A pattern of complaints concerning service and customer service issues at the Lamar County water association have been heard by the Better Business Bureau for the last several years, with complaints on their website dating back to 2016. The reviews have garnered the water association a one-star rating out of five on the BBB website, which was asked to address the underlying reason for their pattern of complaints.
Britton commended Bennett for the work and vision he has in this new leadership role.
“This entire process was about treating people fairly,” Britton said. “With the changes I have talked about, in which these members have helped to do, I believe we have a new era here at Arnold Line. This is a great example of what can be accomplished when people work together. I didn’t say it was easy, but we’ve been able to work through the problems and can already see the effects of the changes. It takes a lot of hard work to make sure members have water 24/7 and these people are doing a good job at that.”
Bennett took over Jan. 8, while Carney came on board the first of the month.
“This water safe station belongs to the people of Arnold Line,” Bennett said.
“Customer service is No. 1. If a customer has a problem, Mr. Carney is going to work his best to solve that problem without ever getting out of our office and having to go somewhere else. We want customers to feel like they are the owners, which they are. It’s not mine, it’s not Bennett’s association or any of the other board members. This association belongs to everyone and we want them to feel like Arnold Line is a place they can respect, with good water and good service. We want a new image, an image that when the name Arnold Line is spoken, people are proud to be on that association, not one they dread to be on.”
Carney, who has been a member of the association since 1978, came out of retirement to accept the management position. “As a homeowner, I’ve seen things going on and recognized that customer service needed to be improved,” he said. “If I was going to come out of retirement and make this work, I wanted to make sure the board was going to back us and they gave us that assurance.”
Carney has been on the job since the first of February and has already seen some improvements and hopes to see a lot more.
“We’ve got good service as far as water, now customer service is going to be the No. 1 priority. I want people to realize that if they have a special issue, to come let me know and let’s work something out. I really want to work with them.”
The building, located at 4901 W. Fourth Street, is currently seeing some upgrades with a new covered entryway and some renovation work inside to the office area.
