Columbus City Council approved an annexation study Tuesday night that would potentially take in three areas north and east of the city, including Columbus Air Force Base.
The study will be performed by Oxford-based firm Bridge and Watson at a projected cost of $9,000-$11,000 and will look at three areas, two of which were previously suggested by Vice Mayor and Ward 2 Councilman Joseph Mickens and Ward 5 Councilman Stephen Jones.
The third area includes CAFB and a portion of Highway 45 North.
The first area is adjacent to East Columbus, and is bordered by Ward 2 and Ward 3. It is bounded by Highway 82 in the north, Armstrong Road to the east, Lehmberg Road to the west and the area of Deerfield Drive to the south.
The second area is bounded on the east by South Lehmberg Road, on the south by the area adjacent to Scott Drive, on the west by Hargrove Road and to the north by the approximate area of Vernon Branch Creek. It is adjacent to Ward 1 and Ward 2.
The third area will be up the Highway 45 corridor and include Columbus Air Force Base. The exact boundaries have not been decided, but City Attorney Jeff Turnage said he thought the city would likely follow a plan developed, but shelved, in 2009.
“In 2009 it went up Highway 45, staying within the right-of-way, and then took in the base itself,” Turnage said. “The base provides all its own water and sewer and police and fire protection, so there would be no cost to the city (to extend those services).”
In 2021 Mississippi State University declined being annexed by the city of Starkville, and, when asked Wednesday afternoon if CAFB had a similar escape hatch, consultant Chris Watson told The Dispatch he didn’t think so.
“There is a specific state law that speaks to annexing property that belongs to a state institution,” Watson said. “I would assume that’s what MSU exercised. I am not aware of a similar law, statute or rule as it relates to federal property.”
Watson said it was possible the Department of Defense could sue to stop the annexation, but he thought it was unlikely.
“It’s not necessarily impossible, but I suppose that’s the way it would play out,” he said. “The federal government or the Department of Defense would be an objector, assuming the annexation even gets that far.”
Questions pertaining to the annexation proposal were submitted by writing to Public Affairs at Columbus Air Force Base, but The Dispatch did not receive a response by press time.
As part of the discussion Tuesday night, Ward 4 Councilman Pierre Beard asked if the city had met its legal obligation to extend city services to the areas annexed in 2015. Those include the east side of Lehmberg Road, a short distance north on Highway 12, the Riverwalk, and the area around Columbus Middle School.
Turnage said no, but added the city is providing garbage pickup and police and fire protection.
“Water services are provided by East Lowndes Water, and if they are getting city electric, they were already getting it,” he said. “If they weren’t, then they get it from 4-County. We can’t do anything about that, it’s certificated to those utilities. That only leaves sanitary sewer, and many of the residents may have been happy with their septic tanks.”
Mickens moved, with a second from Ward 1 Councilwoman Ethel Stewart, to approve the annexation study. It passed 4-2, with Stewart, Mickens, Beard and Jones voting yes and Ward 3 Councilman Rusty Greene and Ward 6 Councilwoman Jacqueline DiCicco voting no.
Tax abatement approved
Chris Clabby, who is renovating the old Columbus Inn and Suites on Fifth Street North, adjacent to the Magnolia Bowl, asked the city to approve an intent resolution to grant an ad valorem tax exemption for the project.
The development is called My Home Columbus and will turn the old hotel into a 95-unit extended stay property, Clabby said, with an estimated investment of $3.5 million to $4 million.
“We are right at the front door to Columbus, and we think our property will align with the city’s redevelopment plans,” Clabby said. “The profile of the guests will change. … Clearly our guests now are not utilizing a lot of the restaurants, bars and stores in town.”
The property renovation is eligible for local ad valorem tax exemptions of up to 10 years under two state statutes, since it is located in both the central business district and a historic district.
The tax break does not entirely exempt the property from taxation, it just means that it is taxed at its old value. In other words, if a property is worth $1 million and gets a $500,000 expansion, it is taxed as if it were still worth $1 million. It does not affect the property’s school taxes, only its city ad valorem taxes.
The property is paying about $26,000 yearly in tax now, Clabby said.
Jones was reluctant to grant the full 10 years.
“I’m for giving a tax break, but not for 10 years,” Jones said. “That’s a long time, and our term ends in 2025. I don’t want to hold the future mayor and council responsible for the money they may need in the future.”
Jones moved to approve an intent resolution to grant a two-year exemption, with a second from Stewart. It passed 5-1, with Mickens voting no.
Once construction is complete, Clabby must come back to the council to ask for the exemption to be activated.
Several downtown properties have been granted the same exemption. Jim Mauldin’s renovation of the old Fred’s got it on a split vote last year, as well as the old Stone Hotel on Fifth Street South, Gail Guynup’s properties on College Street and Mark Alexander Sr.’s on Fifth Street North.
Brian Jones is the local government reporter for Columbus and Lowndes County.
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