A new industrial development megasite. A councilman chronically entangled in criminal investigations. A new name for a longtime mall. A row over money between a mayor and city-appointed board.
A busy 2023 in Lowndes County had a little bit of everything. Here are some of the year’s top stories.
More economic development
Although 2023 didn’t have the massive, headline-grabbing economic development news 2022 boasted, there was still a lot of business being done. Perhaps the story with the biggest implications for the future was the announcement of a new planned industrial megasite north of Highway 82 West.
In June, the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors voted to pony up $250,000 for the Golden Triangle Development LINK to begin due diligence work for the so-called “Cinco” megasite. A megasite is a large swath of land, usually more than 1,000 acres, dedicated to industrial developments. The megasite program is operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority.
This time, the LINK is eyeing about 1,500 acres north of Highway 82 and bounded by North Frontage Road in the south, Steger Road and Golden Horn Road in the east, Swoope Road in the north and the area across from Paccar and east of the catfish farms to the west.
The area’s four existing megasites are home to Steel Dynamics, Aluminum Dynamics and Paccar in Lowndes County and Yokohama Tire in Clay County.
Paccar is investing $209 million to build a new remanufacturing facility next to its existing operations on South Frontage Road. The company, which builds diesel engines for customers such as Kenworth Manufacturing Company and Peterbilt, started construction in December on a 50,000-square-foot facility. It is expected to create around 100 jobs.
Columbus-based Quality Beverage Packing is investing $10.25 million to relocate its beverage concentrate and packaging business to 25 acres on Charleigh D. Ford Jr. Drive. The company has been operating at its current location on Yorkville Park Square since 1996.
The move is expected to create about 31 new jobs.
TVA is seeking public comments on a two-year project to build a 500-megawatt gas-powered turbine energy plant on about 63 acres near Caldwell Road in Caledonia. It will use methane gas-fueled turbine engines to provide power during hours of low generation from the three solar farms being built in Lowndes and Clay counties.
Pierre Beard’s brushes with the law
Ward 4 Councilman Pierre Beard has had quite a year, first being allegedly tied to a couple of armed robberies at the Waffle House and later twice arrested within a month.
The trouble started in June when Columbus police arrested Quavis Betts on two counts of armed robbery, simple assault on a police officer, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest after allegedly robbing two people outside Waffle House.
Betts was arrested across the street at a hotel room in the La Quinta Inn that was booked under Beard’s name.
Surveillance video showed Beard interacting with Betts around the time of the robberies, and police said his involvement would be presented to a grand jury. Betts has been indicted but Beard hasn’t.
On Dec. 1 Beard was pulled over in Gordo, Alabama, for allegedly driving a car with no tag. Beard ended up charged with driving under the influence (alcohol), possession of marijuana (second offense), drug paraphernalia (first offense) and illegal alcohol, all of which are misdemeanors.
Betts, who was a passenger in the car, was charged with public intoxication, possession of marijuana (second offense), drug paraphernalia (first offense) and illegal alcohol.
Beard was arrested again Dec. 11, this time in the comfort of his own home. Lowndes County sheriff’s deputies tracked Betts, who was freshly indicted on his armed robbery charges, to Beard’s house. When they entered the residence, they allegedly found marijuana and a substance believed to be methamphetamine.
Beard was charged with possession of marijuana and possession of methamphetamine, both in misdemeanor amounts.
In the past, Beard faced a misdemeanor marijuana possession citation in January 2021, and a misdemeanor domestic violence charge after allegedly firing a gun in the air while arguing with his wife at their home.
A tale of two parks
Both Columbus and Lowndes County moved the ball on recreation issues in 2023, but in different ways.
Lowndes saw the first phase of its sports complex, located off of Highway 82 West, come to completion with a one-day tournament in October. The $12 million complex includes eight baseball/softball fields, parking, concession/restrooms, an entry gate and a playground.
The county also announced several recreation partnerships: 4-County FastNet will provide free wireless internet, and Bankfirst agreed to sponsor the ball fields, which will be known as “Bankfirst Yards.”
Former Mississippi University for Women athletic director Jennifer Claybrook was hired as the full-time replacement for former county recreation director Roger Short, who died unexpectedly in October 2022. Tom Velek, who had served as interim director, was hired as deputy director.
Meanwhile, after months of debate, the city council voted to issue about $3 million in bonds, serviced by the proceeds from the 2% tourism tax, to augment about $1.4 million in tax revenue it had on hand for an ambitious recreation improvement plan. The total package comes to around $4.4 million, with the lion’s share of the money to be spent at Propst Park and the remainder spread around the city’s other parks and community centers.
The tourism tax adds 2% to prepared food and beverage sales inside the city limits. The city receives $400,000 a year from that revenue stream, with the yearly bond payment just below that amount.
The first phase of that plan was to turn the old youth softball fields into baseball fields. Bids for turfing and fencing came in nearly $475,000 over the estimate. The city is eyeing cuts, including to the $250,000 operations and maintenance budget, as well as seeking grant monies, to pay for it.
Columbus Redevelopment Authority, mayor square off
It’s been an action-packed year for the Columbus Redevelopment Authority, with tensions running higher between the board and the mayor.
Robert Rhett, the last founding member of the CRA board, resigned on July 18, with a little more than a month to go on his term. Rhett was instrumental in selling the former Lee High School on Military Road to the late Scott Berry. The school is now a multi-use development.
In September, Oxford-based developer John Patrick Ferguson backed out of a $30 million project at Burns Bottom. Ferguson reportedly reconsidered after higher than anticipated construction costs.
Cracks in the relationship with City Hall became more apparent in October, when some CRA members told The Dispatch they felt Mayor Keith Gaskin was interfering with its ability to lobby for $2.5 million it needs for infrastructure work.
Gaskin, for his part, said he felt the two groups were competing for funds. The city had asked the legislature for money to complete the Terry Brown Amphitheater, and its request was not funded. The CRA, however, received a $3 million state appropriation.
Tensions ratcheted up further in December when the CRA, against Gaskin’s wishes, hired Washington, DC-based lobbying firm Cornerstone Government Affairs. The board had been waiting on an attorney general’s opinion on whether it could have a lobbyist separate from the city’s, and when Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch punted, the board went ahead and made the hire.
Barely a day later, Gaskin ordered city officials to collect the CRA’s minutes and financial statements dating back to 2014. Other boards under the city’s umbrella, including Columbus Light and Water, Columbus Housing Authority and the CVB, were also asked for documentation, but only going back one year.
County elections
Two new supervisors were elected in Lowndes County, and 2023 saw the first election for a countywide tax collector as a standalone office.
Two longtime supervisors – Harry Sanders in District 1 and John Holliman in District 3 – decided not to run again. In the District 1 race, second-term Caledonia Alderman Matt Furnari emerged victorious from a runoff against Michael Brock in the Republican primary and went on to beat Democrat Tommy Lee Kidd in the general election.
In District 3, Republican Andy Williamson won his primary outright and clinched the win in November against independent Christopher Moore.
Kalee Talley, a deputy clerk in the tax office, defeated two challengers in the Republican primary to become Lowndes County’s standalone tax collector. The tax collector’s office was previously combined with that of the tax assessor. As Lowndes County’s total assessed value edged over $1 billion, it triggered a state law that split the office.
The combined office was held by Greg Andrews, who won reelection as tax assessor.
Garbage in, garbage out
In January, Columbus City Council voted to put out a request for proposals for garbage collection after supply chain issues crippled Golden Triangle Waste Services’ fleet of trucks, leading to frequently interrupted garbage service.
The city got four responses, with Arrow Disposal Service and GTWS the two lowest. However, the city entered into another round of negotiations with the vendors after widespread public grumbling about cutting service from two pickups to once per week.
Gaskin eventually would break a tie to stay with GTWS, at an increased $3.45 per customer per month for pickup once a week. The city also provided bins.
The council did, however, leave the door open to going back to twice-a-week pickup if the once-per-week arrangement didn’t work.
Major shootings
While Columbus had a quieter-than-usual year when it comes to homicides, it saw two multi-casualty shootings in 2023.
The first was in May, when Undra Lamorris Williams allegedly opened fire inside the Inferno sports bar on Highway 45 North.
Devan Thompson, 33, was killed and four others were wounded. Williams turned himself in the next day and was charged with murder. Investigators said at the time the two knew each other and had a pre-existing dispute.
In August, gunfire erupted in the parking lot at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle. Four were wounded, and the hospital was locked down for about an hour. Two brothers from Artesia, Gavin Fields and Dustin Pope, were later arrested and charged with six counts of aggravated assault and one count of shooting into an occupied vehicle.
CPD vs. Mr. John
John Musa, best known as the owner of United Deli in East Columbus, was arrested in February at a building he owns at 114 Alabama St. and charged with simple assault after allegedly holding a man at gunpoint. Musa claimed copper had been stolen multiple times from his air conditioning units, and told police a security camera he set up outside had alerted him someone was lurking behind his building.
Musa drove to the scene, confronted the man and held him at gunpoint until police arrived. Officers arrested him and let the other man go.
Members of the community rallied behind Musa, including starting a GoFundMe to help him recover economically from the thefts. It would eventually raise more than $28,000. In April community members volunteered to work at United Deli, performing renovations and repairs while Musa was on vacation.
The charges against Musa were formally retired in October. Municipal Judge Rhonda Hayes-Ellis wrote in an order that the case had been retired because “… upon review state unable to meet burden of proof.”
Tim Hudson, who was one of Musa’s attorneys, asked the city to formally drop the charges, and it did so in December.
Carpenter to shift tourism roles
Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau CEO Nancy Carpenter is changing roles.
Since 2011, Carpenter has led the CVB and its affiliated nonprofit, the Columbus Cultural Heritage Foundation, mostly under three-year contracts and with separate salaries. The board offered her a one-year contract in September 2022 at just the CVB salary, making her foundation work essentially volunteer.
In November, Carpenter confirmed she was leaving the CVB on March 30. President Liz Terry told The Dispatch a committee had been established to create a job description for the CEO position and begin advertising for Carpenter’s replacement in early 2024.
Carpenter announced at a November Exchange Club meeting she would be taking the CEO position for the CCHF.
(Re)building bridges
Repair work on the pedestrian bridge at the Riverwalk got underway in November.
A runaway barge hit the bridge’s eastern support pier on Feb. 6, 2020, damaging it and leading to its closure. The city would eventually go to court against the barge’s owners and win a $4 million-plus settlement.
Malouf Construction was awarded the repair contract earlier this year. Work was delayed while Malouf relocated several large cranes to the worksite. Repairs are estimated to take about six months.
‘Columbus Place’
Ongoing work by the Hull Property Group to renovate Leigh Mall is largely complete, and the company is now looking for tenants. Facade work and parking lot upgrades were finished shortly after Thanksgiving, and the company told The Dispatch it is actively pursuing leases now.
The mall has also been renamed. In April, Hull announced the structure will now be known as Columbus Place.
A pleasure to pave you
While maybe not the biggest deal in the grand scheme of things, one widely hailed city infrastructure project was nonetheless the talk of the town: the repaving of the road between Magnolia Place and Chick-fil-A.
The road, notorious for its potholes, was jointly owned by the city and California-based Magnolia Place LLC. After years of talking past each other, the city and Magnolia Place agreed to split costs for the $48,000 paving job.
Capitalizing on public sentiment, the city held a mock ribbon cutting in June to celebrate.
The city will maintain the entire road in the future.
Brian Jones is the local government reporter for Columbus and Lowndes County.
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 29 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
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