Corps set to transfer Port Access Road easement

Pending city approval, a bid process on work to remove a sharp curve on Port Access Road is about to begin.

Island group likely unaffected by LINK split with city

In November, officials from the Golden Triangle Development LINK agreed to partner with a committee of city and county officials to explore economic development opportunities for city-owned property on the Island.

Unemployment rates up for most area counties in 2013

A significant decrease in unemployment rates in December 2013 compared to December 2012 were not enough to push 2013’s overall jobless rate below 2012’s in many area counties.

Higgins: Details on LINK future forthcoming

In September 2012, elected officials in Clay, Lowndes and Oktibbeha counties and senior staff with what was then known as the Columbus-Lowndes Development LINK announced a two-phase plan to establish the Golden Triangle Regional Development Authority.

Catfish in the Alley featured in Garden & Gun

After a one-year hiatus, Catfish in the Alley will resume this spring with some very big publicity.

Garden & Gun, a magazine of culture in the American South that reaches more than a million readers, has singled out the annual Columbus event in its current edition.

CVB approves project clearance reports

The Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau Board of Directors on Monday approved full second-half grant installments to Caledonia Days and the Tennessee Williams Tribute & Tour of Victorian Homes.

Eminent domain issue should not delay CalStar project

Lowndes County is pursuing eminent domain for a small tract near the CalStar site that a landowner will not sell at appraised value, but county attorney Tim Hudson and Golden Triangle Development LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins don’t expect the matter to delay construction.

Clay supes approve land swaps for Yokohama road

Clay County supervisors approved two land swaps needed to clear the way for what will be the access road for the Yokohama Tire Company plant.

Link, Columbus call it quits on retail partnership

The Golden Triangle Development Link is no longer responsible for retail development in Columbus.

Link officials confirmed Thursday that after more than a decade of that being part of the economic development recruiter’s goals, the responsibility is now the city’s alone.

Columbus L&W operating incomes up slightly

Columbus Light and Water power sales are down, but the city energy distributor’s purchases from Tennessee Valley Authority are also.

Link, city of Columbus cut retail development ties

The Golden Triangle Development Link will no longer pursue retail development opportunities for the City of Columbus after a pair of Thursday meetings with council members and Link CEO Joe Max Higgins.

Budget gives DOD funding for 20 Lakotas this year

Compromise in the nation’s capital will lead to more Lakotas being assembled in Columbus than previously forecasted.

Wicker: Long-term changes need for entitlement programs

Roger Wicker is optimistic about cuts approved by the U.S. House and Senate in appropriation spending for 2014. In total, the federal government will appropriate $1.1 trillion this fiscal year.

Council tables retail marketing proposal

Columbus councilmen voted to table a proposal from commercial consulting firm Retail Strategies after Mayor Robert Smith suggested that elected officials discuss the idea with the Golden Triangle Development Link.

Mickens, Smith spar over agenda issue

Confusion over an item that did not get added to Tuesday’s city council’s agenda until councilman Joseph Mickens asked at the meeting for it to be added resulted in a testy exchange between he and Columbus Mayor Robert Smith.

Council likely to approve retail marketing contract

Columbus councilmen will likely vote today for the city to enter into a three-year contract with a consulting firm that will recruit retail to city.

Voter ID window opens across Mississippi

Fifteen counties in Mississippi have issued Voter ID cards since the window opened last week for registered voters who need to get one.

Lowndes County isn’t one of those 15, circuit clerk Haley Salazar said Friday, but she expects that to change as the June 3 congressional primaries draw nearer.

Columbus’ 25-year cable contract up for renewal

A third-party consultant is hoping to negotiate a contract renewal between the city of Columbus and Cable One, as well as a new agreement with AT&T for providing cable television by April.

Councilmen want railroad crossings addressed

In August, officials from Kansas City Southern Railway and the Mississippi Department of Transportation fielded a number of responses from concerned citizens at a public hearing regarding the condition of 12 railroad crossings in south Columbus.

Area sales tax returns staying up

Sales tax up. Restaurant tax up. Motel tax up.

Everything Columbus collects tax for showed higher numbers this January than in January 2013.