NATCHEZ &045; Not having Larry L. &uot;Butch&uot; Brown at the helm at the Mississippi Department of Transportation is a blow to Natchez, city engineer David Gardner said Wednesday.

Brown, former Natchez mayor, was dismissed Tuesday on a 2-1 vote by state transportation commissioners. Brown said he was &uot;shocked and saddened&uot; by the decision.

&uot;It has been a privilege and an honor to serve Mississippi by helping to improve our roads and highways during the past two years,&uot; said Brown, who had served more than two years at MDOT. &uot;My primary goal as executive director has always been to foster teamwork and operate MDOT more like a business than a government agency for the most efficient use of our state’s tax dollars.&uot;

Gardner said Brown’s presence &045; coupled with state Sen. Bob M. Dearing as chairman of the Senate transportation committee &045; helped keep Southwest Mississippi from being overlooked in highway projects.

&uot;He was a statewide director, but he knows the issues facing this area,&uot; Gardner said of Brown. &uot;I hope the new director will be someone who knows the problems we face.

&uot;I’m not saying that highways are more or less important in north Mississippi, but what I’m looking at since the 1987 highways bill &045; southwest Mississippi is not even on the same sheet (as other areas of the state).&uot;

Traffic counts often determine where highways will be built or improved, but Gardner pointed out that Southwest Mississippi can’t get higher traffic counts without better roads &045; and Brown understands that, he said.

Southern District transportation director Wayne Brown &045; no relation to Butch &045; voted for him to stay, while Zack Stewart of the northern district and Dick Hall of the central district voted to oust him.

Stewart did not seek re-election this year and leaves office in January.

Stewart told The Associated Press on Tuesday his vote was not personal but was about Brown’s management style.

But Brown’s statement Wednesday alluded to &uot;politics as usual.&uot;

&uot;It’s my hope that the businesslike approach I’ve worked so hard to foster will not fall prey to ‘politics as usual,’ and that MDOT will persist to operate in this manner so that Mississippi can continue to make efficient improvements to our roadways to better safety and foster economic growth,&uot; Brown said in his statement.

Harry Lee James, MDOT’s deputy director and chief engineer, was appointed acting executive director.