A rose to Starkville mayor Lynn Spruill and the Board of Aldermen for sacrificing pay raises to help the city provide equipment for its police department. During Tuesday’s meeting, the mayor and aldermen chose to take pay raises out of the budget proposal after learning that the budget provided the city’s police department about $140,000 less than it requested. Most of the unfunded request was for 10 new cameras and a new hire to monitor that surveillance. The mayor and board pay increases came to a combined $10,000, which won’t move the needle too much. “This was not big money,” Spruill acknowledged. “This was a principle thing, from my standpoint.” The mayor is right. We believe that our elected mayors and board/council/selectmen should be compensated for their work. We also believe that they should not make their pay a high priority. Those in charge of local governments should not be dependent on this compensation to the point that can be put in a compromising position. This is especially true for board/council/selectmen, who are part-time employees. We applaud the mayor and board for having their priorities where they should be, even when it hits them in the pocketbook.
A rose to Aurora Flight Sciences which announced plans for a $43 million expansion that will refurbish one building and build another while increasing employment by more than half to 180 employees. To assist the company, the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a 10-year ad valorem tax exemption. Aurora has been an important part of the region’s industrial/manufacturing base since it opened at the industrial park in 2017. The expansion will include rehabilitating a 40,000 square-foot building and adding a new 50,000 square-foot building. The company currently has about 117 employees and plans to add 63 full-time jobs in the expansion. When we think of economic development, it is only natural to focus our attention on attracting new industry and manufacturing. But when existing companies such as Aurora prosper to the point of expansion, it’s a big boost to the local economy. It also signals to other companies that Lowndes County is a great place to be. What is true of Aurora is true of most of our industry/manufacturing. They continue to expand and support our community through taxes, jobs and community involvement.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
You can help your community
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 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
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 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
