The Sumner County general-operations committee on Jan. 13 approved a $15,000 engagement for an architect to move the Brown House restoration project into a design stage and directed the finance department to execute up to $5,000 to provide temporary construction access to the property.

The action followed repeated public pleas and committee debate over whether routine site work must return to the committee for approval even after a $582,000 appropriation for the project was previously approved by the full commission. Resident Jared Mansfield, who identified himself during public comment, said routine expenditures should remain administrative once a lump-sum appropriation has been made. “The idea that every gravel road or site prep needs to come through this committee…is not only incorrect, it's entirely impractical,” Mansfield said.

Committee members were split over how narrowly to interpret the approved project scope and which body may authorize incidental expenditures. Several commissioners pressed staff and the committee’s ad hoc group for clarity about what counts as routine execution and what requires additional approval. To provide an external check, the committee also voted to ask the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office for a written opinion about whether current procedures and the ad hoc committee’s actions are consistent with state statutes and controls.

Supporters of moving forward said the architect must meet with the ad hoc committee to develop drawings and questions required by state procurement rules for projects above certain thresholds; supporters noted the architect selection followed the county’s request-for-qualifications process. Opponents cautioned that ad hoc committees lack unilateral spending authority and asked that larger or out‑of‑scope expenditures return to the full committee or commission for review.

The committee’s chair framed the action as a narrow authorization: architect fees require formal approval, and incidental, routine expenditures that are within the scope of an approved project may be executed administratively. The motion as amended directed finance to process the modest driveway payment so site access could continue without additional procedural delay; committee members said larger cost overruns would still require further approvals.

Next steps: staff will meet with the selected architect to finalize scope and drawings; the comptroller’s opinion will be sought to clarify the limits of administrative spending and ad hoc committee authority; and the matter will appear on the full commission agenda for any additional required approvals.