Articles by Tess Vrbin
City leaders call ABC corruption claims ‘baseless’
Bill Gavin was minutes away from having surgery on Tuesday when he got a phone call from a constituent.
“The lady started complaining about streets,” the Ward 6 councilman said. “I said, ‘Ma’am, I can’t talk to you right now … I’m going to get an operation.'”
A Better Columbus founder calls for new city leadership
Leslie Sorrell warned the audience that she gets “embarrassingly emotional talking about good government” when she spoke Tuesday at the Columbus Rotary Club meeting.
“I would be less emotional giving a eulogy,” said the co-founder of A Better Columbus, a nonprofit political action corporation aimed at fundamentally changing the city government.
Higgins proposes county take on debt for industrial park projects
The Golden Triangle Development LINK will draw up a contract for the Lowndes County supervisors to review and possibly approve by March 1, LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins said at Friday’s board meeting, in order to settle months of debate over whether and how much to fund the Lowndes County Industrial Development Authority.
CRLC replaces first house destroyed by tornado
Everything changed overnight for Columbus native Greg Mixon, when the Feb. 23, 2019, tornado hit his house on Seventh Avenue North.
“One day you have a house, and the next day you don’t,” he said.
6 companies with total $2.3B investment eyeing Lowndes
The Golden Triangle Development LINK will ask the Lowndes County supervisors Friday for a sewer line extension at the county’s industrial park, in preparation for an automotive company to potentially make its home there, LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins said.
Higgins: Renewed TVA interest in area beefing up industrial recruitment
Four years went by without a single contract from the Tennessee Valley Authority bringing new industry to Lowndes, Oktibbeha or Clay counties. The Mississippi Development Authority also wasn’t pointing many clients in the region’s direction for a while, Golden Triangle Development LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins said.
Clay County EMA director: COVID data lags behind; ICU beds nearly full
The Intensive Care Unit beds at North Mississippi Medical Center-West Point are “pretty much full” as the COVID-19 pandemic continues in light of the Christmas holidays, Clay County Emergency Management Agency Director Torrey Williams told the West Point selectmen at their Tuesday meeting.
Insurance carrier sues LCSD, West Brothers for New Hope High leaky roof coverage
Lowndes County School District’s insurance company filed a lawsuit in federal district court against both the school district and the Columbus-based construction company it contracted for a roofing project that began leaking less than two months after completion.
Hyatt: No positive virus cases can be traced to in-person classroom instruction at MSU
As if managing the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic wasn’t enough, Mississippi State University had to deal with a snowstorm on the first day of the spring 2021 semester Monday, Vice President for Student Affairs Regina Hyatt told the Starkville Rotary Club at its virtual meeting Monday.
LCSD employees will have 10 extra sick days for COVID illness or exposure
Full-time Lowndes County School District employees can use an additional 80 hours, or 10 working days, of paid sick leave if they contract the COVID-19 coronavirus or need to quarantine due to exposure anytime before March 31.
Lowndes County approaching 5,000 COVID cases
COVID-19 cases in the Golden Triangle continue to pile up in light of the holiday season, with Lowndes County still increasing at the highest rate.
OCH investigates ICU director for tweets supporting D.C. violence
OCH Regional Medical Center’s leaders said Wednesday they will investigate tweets posted by hospital intensive care unit director that seemed to support rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C.
Public forums could help cigar lounge add brewpub
Starkville aldermen will consider allowing businesses in certain parts of the city to serve alcohol without food, the second change that would allow a Tupelo-based cigar shop and lounge to open a location downtown.
Former Columbus mayor to run for alderman in Starkville
Former Columbus mayor Jeffrey Rupp officially re-entered politics Monday when he qualified to run for Ward 3 alderman in Starkville.
Garrard retiring after 18 years with Oktibbeha County
Oktibbeha County Administrator Emily Garrard will retire in June after almost seven years in the position and 18 working for the county, she announced at Monday’s board of supervisors meeting.
Golden Triangle cities see minimal blows to tax revenue during pandemic
When the COVID-19 pandemic forced businesses to close or restrict their services in March and April 2020, all three cities in the Golden Triangle braced for a potentially crippling financial blow.
Starkville Year in Review: Pandemic changes school, business, life; debate arises on replacing lake dam after near breach
The COVID-19 pandemic was the biggest, but far from the only, change to shake Starkville and Oktibbeha County in 2020. Since March, business and social activities have been limited and citizens have worn face masks, hoping to curb the spread of the virus.
Local legislators anticipate COVID-19 relief, criminal justice reform in 2021
The 2021 session of the Mississippi Legislature is scheduled to start next week amid an ongoing pandemic that sidelined several issues and sickened dozens of members last year.
Fireworks vendors anticipate high demand for New Year’s
The Orbit Fireworks tent on Highway 182 just west of Starkville nearly sold out of some of its products for the Fourth of July this year.
Eric Ferguson, who runs the tent with his 16-year-old son Slade, said it was clear that people wanted to get out of their houses thanks to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Citizens, businesses look forward to potential COVID relief funds
Stephen Hall spent his first federal stimulus check on a new tool shed and a fence. He has remained employed throughout the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic as a law enforcement officer in Columbus, considered an “essential worker,” he said.
Jessica Hill’s situation was completely different. She was furloughed from her job as a supervisor at Yokohama Tire Corporation in West Point for about six weeks and had to dip into her savings to make ends meet, she said.