County committee to examine pair of bids

A committee appointed by the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors will soon begin discussions on the expansion of a steel company and county water service.

Ole Miss makes Alabama work for victory

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — It’s a new week for the University of Mississippi football team.

After a 33-14 loss to the University of Alabama on Saturday night at Bryant-Denny Stadium, the Rebels (3-2, 0-1 Southeastern Conference) will face the SEC Western Division’s newest member, Texas A&M University, Saturday in Oxford. Both teams will try for their first SEC win. And while Ole Miss didn’t get that first league victory Saturday against the nation’s top-ranked team, it showed the Crimson Tide are vulnerable.

Council considers recycling contract

The Columbus City Council will begin looking at its contract with Mississippi Industrial Waste Disposal Tuesday night. The contract expires in November. The waste company is a subsidiary of Waste Pro.

Supes amend in-lieu agreements for two companies

The Lowndes County Board of Supervisors Friday voted to amend the KiOR in-lieu agreement to include two additional properties on its campus. New Jersey-based Matheson TRIGAS and Air Products and Chemicals of Allentown, Pa., are the latest companies to receive a tax deduction of 66 percent of their investment.

Cheap Chinese steel, stagnant economy are Severstal’s main challenges

U.S. steel mills have had a long-standing reputation of being unionized, grim manufacturing plants polluting the skyline of the blight-filled Rust Belt. Lowndes County’s Severstal does not seem to fit the stereotypical steel mill mold, however.

Experts doubt pork shortage, but say prices could soar

A statement from Britain’s National Pig Association sent pork lovers reeling Tuesday. In the report, British hog farmers claim the world will be facing a shortage of pork, particularly bacon, in 2013. But some local experts say the shortage statement is somewhat misleading.

Seventh Avenue festival will feature plenty of ‘Zapp’

K-Ci and JoJo, Dru Hill and Bobby “Blue” Bland are just a few of the A-list entertainers who have performed on the stage on the corner of Seventh Avenue North and 15th Street in Columbus in past years. And organizers of this year’s Seventh Avenue Heritage Festival promise this year’s event, which starts Oct. 4, will be one of the best the city has seen.

City awaits DOJ redistricting decision

After months of discussion, the 2012 redistricting plan for the City of Columbus has been submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. And consultant Chris Watson, whose firm Bridge and Watson handled the redistricting, said the city will now wait for the DOJ to make its decision.

Short says complex a success despite parking, restroom issues

Although official numbers aren’t available, organizers for the opening of the Columbus Soccer Complex estimate more than 2,000 people attended Saturday’s festivities. And for Columbus-Lowndes Recreation Authority Executive Director Roger Short, the grand opening was a major success.

Alabama’s shutout streak ends vs. FAU

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — It never existed for University of Alabama football coach Nick Saban.

The imaginary “it” is the media-generated buzz the Crimson Tide were on a three-game shutout streak. Imaginary or not, it ended Saturday in Bryant Denny Stadium when the Florida Atlantic University Owls scored seven points in the fourth quarter.

Defense leads West Lowndes past East Oktibbeha

While no one at West Lowndes High School’s Tiger Field was holding a piece of white fencing embossed with a capital ‘D’, defense was the key Friday night in the Panthers’ 14-0 victory against the East Oktibbeha Titans.

Area farmers markets winding down as fall approaches

Anchored along the South end of the Columbus Soccer Complex, the Hitching Lot Farmers Market continues to provide homegrown and homemade goods three days a week for Lowndes County residents. And about a month before it will close its doors until the early spring of 2013, consumers still descend upon the market at daybreak to line up to purchase the locally grown produce.

Crappie Masters should bring big bucks to Columbus

Recreation is big business in Columbus. A $5 million sports complex is scheduled to open Saturday and stake-holders are hoping to see it bring tourism dollars and more sales tax revenue to the area. And with a national professional fishing tournament starting the first week in October, recreation could mean millions of dollars spent in Columbus.

EMCC is lone bidder for Columbus Country Club

An expansion for the Mayhew campus of East Mississippi Community College may be just around the corner. While the school’s interest in purchasing the bankrupt Columbus Country Club has been discussed publicly since April 2011, the purchase could finally become official.

Short Main to get speed bumps

Speeders on Short Main Street in Columbus, a residential extenuation of Main Street, will soon have a bumpy ride.

Council gives bus service green light

Lawrence, Ind., and Columbus are approximately 500 miles apart. While Lawrence has twice the population of the Friendly City and is a suburb of the sprawling Indianapolis, the two cities will soon have something in common — a mass transportation system from the same provider.

CVB board addresses use of vehicle, reviews financials of two festivals

After months of board members playing lawyer and reciting legalese, Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau Attorney Chris Latimer provided the board with an opinion of how executive director Nancy Carpenter can use a vehicle owned by the CVB during the board’s monthly meeting on Monday.

Krispy Kreme ready for Tuesday opening

On a warm Saturday in September, Columbus residents were already lining up by 9 a.m. The jazz band from Mississippi School of Mathematics and Science, under the direction of local rocker Dawn Barham, played Motown and R&B hits in the background as the crowd’s anticipation approached fever pitch.

Puckett lifts Heritage Academy to key victory

It’s Miller time at Heritage Academy.

Senior running back Miller Puckett rushed for 150 yards and three touchdowns Friday night to lead the Heritage Academy football team to a 35-14 victory against Clarksdale Lee Academy.

Lowndes taxes remain flat; reserves to cover budget shortfall

Millage rates will stay the same for Lowndes County residents as the board of supervisors passed its Fiscal Year 2013 budget Friday morning after a public hearing was held.