South Alabama trustees undecided on next university president

The University of South Alabama Board of Trustees voted Tuesday to continue the school’s presidential search and re-open it to other candidates.

Calls for pre-K services dominate consolidation hearing

Starkville Mayor Parker Wiseman said Thursday he is reminded of the importance of Oktibbeha County’s upcoming school consolidation every time he looks at his daughter, Amelia.

Standing before a crowd of Starkville School District and Oktibbeha County School District stakeholders Thursday, Wiseman, a 1999 graduate of Starkville High School who spent his youth in the city school system, said the county’s two districts must successfully join for the benefit of not only his child, but also all local school children.

SPD searching for hit-and-run suspect

Starkville Police Department is searching for Johnnie Lasster, 66, of 141 Pecan Acres, after an alleged hit-and-run occurred at the Dollar General located on Highway 182 Saturday.

Mill project gets OK from National Parks Service

Golden Triangle developer Mark Castleberry confirmed Thursday that The Mill project received a verbal, conditional approval from the National Parks Service for Cooley Building renovations, one of the final hurdles left to clear before construction begins.

Merger committee readying for logistics public hearing

A second public hearing on school merger issues will be held 7 p.m. today at the Greensboro Center and will focus on the Commission on Starkville Consolidated School District Structure’s tentative plan to logistically combine the city and county systems.

Brown overwhelmingly re-secures prosecutor’s post

Interim Oktibbeha County Prosecutor Haley Brown easily defeated two challengers during a special election Tuesday, securing almost 70 percent of countywide ballots.

Walker’s ordinance review committee proposal fails

Despite Ward 4 Alderman Jason Walker’s pleas for openness and transparency on an impending sidewalk and ordinance review process, his proposal creating a seven-person review committee and shaping its goals died in a 5-2 vote Tuesday.

Public education supporters to hold Twitter town hall

At least two Commission on Starkville Consolidated School District Structure members will answer questions about the group’s merger plan at 7 p.m. Wednesday during a Twitter town hall event, Starkville School District officials confirmed.

Road bond notice dies without support

A $6 million bond intent notice for road construction and maintenance projects failed Monday after receiving little support from the Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors.

Starkville is C Spire fiber Internet finalist

Starkville is one of nine Mississippi communities now vying to become the first recipient of C Spire’s high-speed Internet roll-out program, company officials announced Monday in Ridgeland.

Walker calling for ordinance review committee

Ward 4 Alderman Jason Walker will propose creating a seven-person review committee Tuesday to handle the board-requested analysis of Starkville’s sidewalk and landscaping ordinance.

Commissioner: Poll workers ready for Tuesday’s race

Election Commissioner Myles Carpenter says Oktibbeha County poll workers are ready for Tuesday’s prosecutor race and are informed on how to handle potential voting issues that emerged during this year’s municipal primaries.

Police searching for Walmart theft suspects

Starkville Police Department is searching for five men after $14,000 in Apple iPads was stolen from Walmart Wednesday.

Interest builds in research park expansion

David Shaw, Mississippi State University’s vice president for research and economic development, said growing interest in the second phase of expansions at the Thad Cochran Research, Technology and Economic Development Park could culminate into new partnerships next year.

Warrant issued for drive-by shooting suspect

Starkville Police Department issued an arrest warrant Thursday for Deangelo Dewayne Manning, 18, of 406 Hancock Circle, after a drive-by shooting occurred on Henderson Hill.

Apartment blaze extinguished by sprinkler system

Ask Starkville Fire Marshal Mark McCurdy if he believes the city’s fire sprinkler ordinance is effective and he’ll give you a resounding “Yes.”

School logistics taking shape in merger committee

The Commission on Starkville School District Structure approved its agenda Tuesday for Nov. 7’s public hearing, a meeting which will focus on the group’s tentative plan to successfully merge Oktibbeha County and SSD students into one unified system in 2015.

Brown leads fund-raising in prosecutor race

Interim Oktibbeha County Prosecutor Haley Brown holds a significant lead in campaign financing over her two opponents, Brace Knox and Matthew Wilson, outpacing both in donations and expenses used toward Nov. 5’s special election, documentation shows.

SA head, elementary principal to resign at the end of the academic year

The Starkville Academy Board of Directors will soon begin discussing two upcoming vacancies after Head of School John “Doc” Stephens and Elementary Principal Cherie Maynard announced their intentions to resign at the end of the academic year for family reasons.

Three murder suspects bound over to grand jury

Three people charged with a July capital murder in Starkville were bound over last week to the county court system, Starkville Municipal Court Administrator Tony Rook confirmed Monday.