Two longtime members of separate public boards drew challengers to their reappointment, and the city council will decide those appointments Tuesday.
Vice Chair and 10-year member Micheal Tate is seeking appointment to another 5-year term on the Columbus Light and Water Board, a spot for which local attorney Shane Tompkins also has applied.
On the Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau, Chairwoman Liz Terry and retired sales and marketing professional Bonita Smith are vying for a 3-year term.
CLW
CLW’s board approves all bill payments and sets policy for providing electric and water services to the city. Its members receive $300 per month and city health insurance.
Tate has 25 years of professional finance experience and also is a pastor, according to his application.
“I have the same drive and urgency to continue my serving,” he wrote in his application. “I like to think of myself as a pillar not only for the board, but also for the community.”
Speaking with The Dispatch, Tate lauded the utility’s efforts to convert to paperless billing, as well as its beautification efforts in the city. He said “18-to-20%” of the staff was preparing to retire in the coming months, and he hopes to promote from within to fill as many of those vacancies as possible.
“We just need to continue to work in the direction we’re headed in,” he said. “What we’re trying to do is improve quality of life … for our customers.”
Tompkins has worked as a licensed attorney in Mississippi for 25 years, serving as a member or legal counsel for several public boards during that time, according to his application.
“Columbus is my home,” Tompkins wrote in his application. “I own a residence and commercial building and would like to be involved with the monitoring and growth of the utilities within the city.”
He did not return a call and message from The Dispatch by press time.
CVB
The CVB promotes tourism in the city and county through its nine-member board, which includes four city appointments, four county appointments and one joint appointment of the Columbus mayor and Lowndes County Board of Supervisors president.
The organization is looking for an executive director, having appointed two interim directors to co-lead the organization after Nancy Carpenter retired earlier this year.
Smith, a Columbus native, said she moved back to the city in 2018. She has experience in sales, marketing and education. She also worked stints in radio and television broadcasting in Jackson.
Serving on the CVB board, she said, will help her better understand what events Columbus has to offer. She believes she can use her skills to better get the world out through media involvement and press releases.
“There are lots of wonderful things going on, and my vision would be to promote it,” she said.
Terry, a retired district manager for Mississippi Department of Rehabilitation Services who was first appointed to the CVB board in 2015, said the CVB is “trying to rebrand.”
“Our interim directors are attending different trainings to see what things CVBs across the state are doing and what things can be done in Columbus,” Terry said. “It would be my vision to make sure the CVB is able to work with other organizations in the city to promote bigger events that would draw people to Columbus.”
She believes her experience, combined with the CVB’s successful track record, make her the best fit for the appointment.
“I have a history and knowledge of what is required to help make Columbus a destination city and (I) desire to continue this work” she wrote in her application.
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
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