REGULAR
COUNCIL MEETING, TUESDAY, JANUARY 06, 2009 AT 9:00 A.M.
Meeting
called to order by Council President Perry.
Present: Thomas, Perry, Henson, Palmer, Harris.
Absent: None.
The meeting was opened with prayer
by Rev. Odell Hopkins of
Motion was made by Councilwoman
Henson duly seconded by Councilman Thomas and unanimously passed by the Council
to approve the agenda for this meeting.
Motion was made by Councilman Thomas
duly seconded by Councilwoman Henson and unanimously passed by the Council to
approve the minutes dated December 16, 2008.
Councilman Thomas offered and moved
the adoption and passage of the following Order:
ORDER #14459 ORDER CONFIRMING
THE RE-APPOINTMENT BY THE MAYOR OF
BETTY LOU
JONES TO THE KEEP
and, Councilwoman Henson seconded the
motion, whereupon said Order was discussed, passed and adopted by the Council
by a vote as follows:
Yea: Thomas, Perry, Henson, Palmer, Harris.
Nay: None.
Councilman Thomas offered and moved
the adoption and passage of the following Order:
ORDER #14460 ORDER CONFIRMING
THE RE-APPOINTMENT BY THE MAYOR OF
JEFFREY
DUBOSE TO THE KEEP
and, Councilwoman Henson seconded the
motion, whereupon said Order was discussed, passed and adopted by the Council
by a vote as follows:
Yea: Thomas, Perry, Henson, Palmer, Harris.
Nay: None.
Motion was made by Councilman Thomas
duly seconded by Councilwoman Henson and unanimously passed by the Council to
approve the following proclamation:
January 19,
2009 – “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day”
Councilwoman Henson offered and
moved the adoption and passage of the following Order:
ORDER #14461 ORDER DONATING PHOTOGRAPHIC NEGATIVES TO
THE
LAUDERDALE
COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF ARCHIVES & HISTORY
and, Councilman Palmer seconded the motion,
whereupon said Order was discussed, passed and adopted by the Council by a vote
as follows:
Yea: Thomas, Perry, Henson, Palmer, Harris.
Nay: None.
Councilman Thomas offered and moved
the adoption and passage of the following Resolution:
RESO. #5549 RESOLUTION
AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION AND FILING OF GRANT
APPLICATION
FOR 2009 MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF WILDLIFE,
FISHERIES
AND PARKS,
GRANT FUNDS
and, Councilman Harris seconded the motion,
whereupon said Resolution was discussed, passed and adopted by the Council by a
vote as follows:
Yea: Thomas, Perry, Henson, Palmer, Harris.
Nay: None.
Councilman Thomas offered and moved
the adoption and passage of the following Order:
ORDER #14462 ORDER ACCEPTING
THE BID OF TRADEMARK COMMERCIAL
CONSTRUCTION,
RESTROOM AT
THE SOCCER COMPLEX AND AUTHORIZING
EXECUTION OF
CONTRACT FOR SAID WORK
and, Councilman Harris seconded the motion,
whereupon said Order was discussed, passed and adopted by the Council by a vote
as follows:
Yea: Thomas, Perry, Henson, Palmer, Harris.
Nay: None.
Motion was made by Councilwoman
Henson duly seconded by Councilman Palmer and unanimously passed by the Council
to approve the claims docket dated December 31, 2008 in the amount of
$2,478,128.80.
Motion was made by Councilman Harris
duly seconded by Councilman Thomas and unanimously passed by the Council to
remove from the table the motion and second to approve the agreement with HRI
for the Threefoot project. The motion
that was on the table was made by Councilman Harris duly seconded by Councilman
Thomas. Councilman Thomas asked HRI if
they would reduce the city’s obligation from $14 million to $7 million. He also stated that the letters of pledge
from business people in
The hour of 9:15 a.m. having
arrived, the hearing as set to receive bids from banks as municipal
depositories was opened with motion by Councilman Palmer duly seconded by
Councilwoman Henson and unanimously passed by the Council. City Clerk Ed Skipper stated that the
following banks submitted bids: Great
Southern National Bank, Trustmark Bank, Bank Plus, Commercial Bank, Community
Bank, First State Bank, and Citizens National Bank. Motion was made by Councilwoman Henson duly
seconded by Councilman Palmer and unanimously passed by the Council to close
the hearing. Councilman Harris offered
and moved the adoption and passage of the following Order:
ORDER #14463 ORDER DESIGNATING MUNICIPAL DEPOSITORIES
and, Councilwoman Henson seconded the
motion, whereupon said Order was discussed, passed and adopted by the Council
by a vote as follows:
Yea: Thomas, Perry, Henson, Palmer, Harris.
Nay: None.
Discussion continued regarding the
Threefoot agreement. Councilman Harris
thanked Mr. Lala for his understanding of what is going on and for supporting
this project. Councilwoman Henson asked
Councilman Thomas if he was making a motion on the $7 million obligation for
the city and he said he was just discussing the matter. Mr. Press Kabacoff with HRI stated that it
seemed like more people were coming together for this project. He wants to make sure the locals benefit from
the jobs and wants to work with the whole community. The discussion was once again ended because
of another public hearing.
The hour of 9:30 a.m. having
arrived, the hearing as called for regarding the proposed closing of
roadway/railway grade crossings inside the city limits (
Discussion regarding the Threefoot
project continued at this time. Ms.
Barbaree Heaster, chairman of the Downtown Alliance appeared and stated they
have been working on a plan to get community support for this project. They are working with City Attorney Bill
Hammack on a legal document for the commitment.
She asked the Council to support this project. Mr. Sidney Barthelemy with HRI advised that
if action is not taken on this agreement at this meeting then $150,000 to
$200,000 a month would be lost in historic tax credits. This project will bring 55 permanent jobs
with 350 to 400 construction jobs. They
are using a local contractor and sub-contractors for this project. He stated the when he was Mayor New Orleans
that the city took a chance on development that has helped promote
ORDER #14464 ORDER AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF
AGREEMENT FOR THE
(
COMPANY, LLC
AND THE CITY OF
and, Councilman Thomas seconded the motion,
whereupon said Order was discussed, passed and adopted by the Council by a vote
as follows:
Yea: Perry, Palmer, Harris.
Nay: Thomas, Henson.
City Attorney Bill Hammack expressed
to the City Council and the administration his thanks for the professional way
they have approached this project and for the jobs they are doing. Council-man Palmer stated that there are
going to be many things said but he hates to face the prospect of losing this
building like other cities have lost their historic buildings. He feels it is best to take the change. There is the possibility of a lot of good
this will bring to the city. Councilman
Thomas stated that he is going to support the project even though they
disagreed. He said he is not against the
project, it is just a matter of money. Mr. Kabacoff appeared and said he appreciated
that they were a team and thinks the City Council acted wisely. HRI will do their part. He said he would have felt more confident if
they had the support of all the Council members. He said he would be willing to go to
President Perry called for the
Mayor’s report. He stated he intended to
call a special meeting on January 27th at 9:00 a.m. for the purpose
of presenting the 2008 annual report.
Sharon Smith appeared regarding activities for the Martin Luther King
Jr. celebration/parade. The theme this
year is “The Audacity of Hope to Make the Dream Come True”. The parade will be held on January 19th
and will begin at 12:00 noon and end at
President Perry called for citizen
comments. Bill Heidelberg,
President Perry called for Council
comments. Councilman Harris stated he
agreed with some of the comments made by Mr. Heidelberg. He expressed his sympathy to the Crowe family
on the passing of Charles Crowe. He said
he respected Dr. Thomas and Mrs. Henson.
He said with the wisdom that has come from them and the other Council members has helped him.
He said he respects their decisions and he will continue consulting with
them. In spite of not always agreeing,
they are concerned for the city.
Councilman Palmer stated this City Council was a group of individuals
who talk about everything and sometimes disagree. He hopes the Threefoot project will be a
success. Councilman Harris gave out his
new phone number and said he welcomed all comments. Councilwoman Henson congratulated Chief
Dubose and his men for the good job in making an arrest. She said some things were a pleasure about
this job – working with the City Attorney, Pam and the Council members. She has never had anyone try to make her
change her mind. They disagree but are
agreeable. She wants what is best for
this city. Councilman Thomas expressed
his sympathy to the family of Representative Tommy Horne. He said he and Mr. Horned didn’t agree al the
time but Mr. Horne stood by what he told him.
There are new projects coming up this year. President Perry stated that no one tries to
influence others to make a decision. She
never wanted to see the city have to use GO bonds for this building. She appreciated Mr. Heidelberg’s comments. There are problems in sections of downtown
that need to be addressed and she has talked to the Mayor about these. She said she appreciated the members of this
City Council for their honesty to do what they think is right. Mr. Wallace Heggie, former city employee,
along with the newly elected election commissioners were sworn in on Monday. Councilman Harris thanked the students from
MCC who came to the City council meeting during their break. He told them they were doing a good job. Public Works Director Monty Jackson stated
that as of January 15th citizens could not longer pay their past due
water bill in the field. These must be
paid at city hall, the bank or by mail.
CAO Ken Storms discussed the cost
There being no further business to
come before the Council at this time, the meeting was adjourned. Sine die.
Respectfully submitted,
Pam
McInnis, Clerk of Council