Articles by Zack Plair
Signing off: Longtime WCBI anchor retiring after 44 years on the air
The first time it happened, it was an unfortunate accident — a miscalculation.
Supes deliver possible fatal blow to restaurant tax
Negotiations to renew Lowndes County’s 2-percent restaurant tax took a potentially fatal step backward Friday when the board of supervisors redoubled their efforts to keep any of the tax from being directly distributed for recreation.
Columbus police chief retiring at year’s end
Columbus Police Chief Oscar Lewis submitted a letter to city leaders Monday announcing his intent to retire at the end of the month.
Restaurant tax: Contentious city-county meeting yields few results
A frustrated Leroy Brooks stood up, put on his jacket and started gathering his belongings from the table in the Trotter Convention Center meeting room at which he had been seated for about two hours Thursday morning.
Restaurant tax: Chism open to removing tax floor
District 37 Rep. Gary Chism offered mixed reviews to The Dispatch Thursday on suggestions that came out of a joint meeting of Columbus and Lowndes County leaders at Trotter Convention Center to discuss renewing the 2-percent restaurant tax.
Trotter patrons complain to council about early close policy
City officials said this week most people have been “understanding” of the temporary earlier closing time at Trotter Convention Center in the wake of a fatal Thanksgiving morning shooting outside the downtown facility.
Restaurant tax: City seeks meeting with county on restaurant tax
Columbus’ mayor and city council intend to formally seek a joint meeting with the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors to negotiate the terms of a resolution to renew the 2-percent restaurant tax.
After shooting, Trotter gets early closing time for 6 mos.
Trotter Convention Center will be closing early for the next six months.
Man killed in Thanksgiving shooting outside Trotter
Police are still looking for a suspect in an early Thursday morning fatal shooting outside the Trotter Convention Center in downtown Columbus.
Getting back to normal: One of MSU’s most recognizable faces opens up about his fight with cancer
Last Saturday, Sid Salter placed flowers on his parents’ graves at a cemetery in his native Neshoba County.
Restaurant tax: CVB offers compromise on 2-percent tax
The Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau offered its own compromise Monday to the debate between Columbus and Lowndes County on how to divide future 2-percent restaurant tax revenue.
LINK CEO says MDA strategy, leadership costing state jobs
Golden Triangle Development LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins claims the Mississippi Development Authority is undermining — not promoting — economic development efforts in the state.
Joe Max Higgins says state flag, HB 1523 contributing to state’s development woes
Mississippi is suffering on the economic development front, and Golden Triangle Development LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins said the problem is mostly self-inflicted.
Mayor: Foul language fouling up restaurant tax conversation
If Golden Triangle Development LINK CEO Joe Max Higgins arranges a joint meeting of Columbus and Lowndes County officials to negotiate how to divide a 2-percent restaurant sales tax, Mayor Robert Smith said he will not attend.
Restaurant tax: Mayor rejects LINK proposal dividing revenue
Columbus Mayor Robert Smith is rejecting a proposal to save a 2-percent restaurant sales tax, but he said he is open to continuing negotiations on how the tax revenue should be divided.
Funds for Burns Bottom revitalization expected next month
Over the last two years, when people said the Burns Bottom revitalization project was dead, Columbus Redevelopment Authority President John Acker didn’t correct them.
Competing tax resolutions put CVB in jeopardy
There are officially two competing resolutions seeking to renew the 2-percent food and beverage tax in Lowndes County.
After shooting, council forces reduced club hours
Another Columbus nightclub is feeling the squeeze of the city council’s “Safety First” philosophy.
Sources: Davis was pointing gun in the direction of the officer when he was shot
While the city of Columbus will not be immediately releasing body camera footage that captured a police officer shooting and killing a local man outside a nightclub on Saturday morning, multiple sources who have seen the video have told The Dispatch what it shows.
MBI says no to city releasing Booth body cam footage
The city of Columbus will not be immediately releasing body camera footage that captured a police officer shooting and killing a local man outside a nightclub on Saturday morning.
Holiday Handcrafts Bazaar accepting vendor applications
July 12, 2025
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