Former Mayor Robert Smith is looking to make it a three-peat.
Smith, who already sits on both the Golden Triangle Regional Waste Management Authority board and the Columbus Municipal School Board, has thrown his hat in the ring for an upcoming vacancy on the Columbus Utilities Commission.
The spot is currently held by Jabari Edwards, whose five-year appointment expires June 19. The appointment will be made June 20, and the deadline to apply is noon on June 14.
Smith, who is thus far the sole applicant for the post, told The Dispatch Wednesday afternoon he feels uniquely qualified for the appointment.
“I think I would be a great asset,” he said. “When I was mayor I worked closely with the executive director and with the board. With my knowledge and expertise I think I bring a lot to the table.”
Smith said his priorities included working to find grant funding and to keep rates low.
“I will work with the executive director and the board to identify and apply for grant funds for the electric, sewer and water division,” Smith said. “I will also work to upgrade the facilities across both divisions, and work to provide more reliable and affordable utility service to the customers.”
Smith was most recently appointed to the CMSD board in February and was reappointed to the waste management board in January 2022. He served as mayor from 2006-21, and as Ward 1 councilman from 2001-06.
Smith has worked as a teacher, coach and administrator for the Lowndes County School District and previously served on the CMSD board, as well.
City Attorney Jeff Turnage, speaking at Mayor Keith Gaskin’s Wednesday press conference, said there is no legal issue with Smith serving on multiple boards.
“The only issue might be separation of powers, but I believe (those boards) are all executive branch so that’s not an issue,” Turnage said.
Edwards was appointed to the CLW board in June 2018, replacing Tiffany Turner, who did not seek reappointment. He had previously served on that board from 2004-12 and had served as Smith’s campaign manager in 2013. Shortly after Smith’s reelection for that term, the city hired Edwards’ firm, J5, to work as its project manager.
Edwards and J5 President Antwann Richardson were indicted in June 2022 for allegedly misusing more than $2 million in Paycheck Protection Plan and Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program funding.
They allegedly fraudulently applied for coronavirus relief funds through North Atlantic Security, which Edwards owned at the time but later sold, and Edwards Enterprises, a company listing Edwards as its sole member.
The two are jointly charged with 17 criminal counts, including multiple charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and money laundering.
Propst funding
Chief Financial Officer Jim Brigham, speaking at Gaskin’s Wednesday press conference, said it will likely be later this summer before the city can secure funding for the $3 million it needs for renovations at Propst Park.
Tuesday night the council, on a split vote, approved a $4.4 million renovation plan that included upgrades at Propst, as well as to community centers. The city has about $1.4 million in proceeds from the 2% restaurant tax on hand.
The tax is collected from prepared food and beverage sales inside the city limits. It was set to expire this year, but was renewed for 10 years during the last legislative session.
“The new 2% tax takes effect July 1,” he said. “There’s some administrative tasks that have to be done prior to that. We wouldn’t want to enter into any kind of agreement until those are done and we meet all the state’s requirements. The last thing we want is to get the loan and not get the funds.”
The roughly $400,000 a year the city gets from the tax will be used to service the debt.
The city will try to get a loan from the Mississippi Development Bank first, Brigham said.
“We’ve got good credit with them, and we’ve done loans with them before,” Brigham said. “It has really been put together by the state to create the opportunity for municipalities like Columbus to get good financing for improving the neighborhoods and improving the city.”
Working with the MDB would not affect the city’s debt limit.
“The overall debt for the city is limited at 20% of the appraised value,” Brigham said. “Currently the appraised value is just short of $200 million, so right now our limit is $40 million. At the end of this year we will be somewhere around $26 million (in debt).”
The city’s debt is about $28 million now.
Brigham said general obligation or revenue bonds are still on the table, but would likely count against the city’s debt limit.
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 42 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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