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Monday morning, July 17th, Simpson County government officials met at Zip’s Restaurant to share what is happening in their respective cities. The Board of Supervisors, area Representatives, County Superintendent of Education, County Administrator, media, Election commissioner, Simpson County Development Foundation personal, and others were present for the yearly event.
Mayor John Henry Berry spoke first giving an update on D’Lo. John Henry shared with the group that Andy Gipson and his family are renovating an old store in D’Lo which will become a restaurant, coffee shop, pastries, plus music. The TV series that John Henry began work on several years ago was picked up for a second season on Up TV and the show will air August 3rd. “I’ve always wanted to promote D’Lo and the tv show is a great way,” commented Berry. Berry discussed the problems of infrastructure with the city. As with all cities, there just isn’t enough money. Buildings and streets are old and need repair as well as paving of many streets. “Water, sewage, and roads are at the top of the list as to what D’Lo needs,” John Henry stated. The Water Park has a Frisbee course which explains the history of D’Lo. Brian Kennedy is the Supervisor for the D’Lo area.
Mayor Dale Berry of Magee spoke next. Dale announced that the new Love’s Truck Stop will open Thursday, July 20th. An 18-wheeler car wash is to be built near the Love’s Truck Stop. “We have 12 tournaments booked for the Sportsplex which brings in approximately $300,000 per tournament, Berry reported. “Majestic Burgers and Buffalo Wild Wings are considering locating in Magee,” said Dale. Berry explained that two business in our area, Pioneer and Magee General Hospital, need our help due to Obama Care. Two credit unions are coming to Magee. The shopping center is getting a face lift. No word on a Kroger or Home Depot coming to Magee. (that seems to be speculation). Mayor Berry stated “we have too many apartment complexes…no more will be built.” The Mayor explained that we are still working on a clean-up of the city and constantly looking for ways to pave our streets.
Mendenhall Mayor Todd Booth told of the beautification project that has taken place at the intersection of Highway 13 and 49. “We are continuously working to clean up and open up highway 13 making the area more visible from the highway,” stated Booth. His administration has worked to pay down debt and not borrow money. “I have found that if one or two people on a street will clean up their property, others will follow. We must all work together to make our city more attractive,” explained the Mayor. Work is continuing on the frontage road. A large culvert is needed which the city has obtained but have been unable to install due to the weather. “With the opening of the frontage road, highway frontage land will be available for development,” said Todd. Paving and repairing streets, updating of sewage system, and upgrade of water lines are all areas the Mayor is constantly seeking resources. “Main Street is the heart beat of a town.” “We must continually strive to keep our Main Street strong,” Booth said. From a $450,000 grant the city was able to add 19 people to the sewer system. $80.000 has been spent on the playground area. “I can’t say it enough, trade locally,” the Mayor encouraged.
SCDF Director Donnie Caughman spoke on the aging population in Simpson County. With an aging population, the tax base is lowered. The Foundation is looking for new business constantly.
Rhuel Dickerson, County Administrator, spoke on the problems facing the county. The garbage situation is just not an inconvenience but a critical health problem. “We will get the garbage picked up,” emphasized Dickerson. “Road work is dangerous no matter if you are on a garbage truck or picking up trash off the side of the road,” explained Rhuel. Public utilities are the “quite” taxes…but very important to our county. Public utilities are 20% of our tax base. Anytime we allow a tax exemption, the needed money is coming out of somebody’s pocket and that usually is the regular tax payer’s pocket.
Superintendent of Education Greg Paes talked about the need for the public to be positive about our schools. “We have 3 new strong principals at Magee, let’s get behind them, “said Paes. We lost a lot of good teachers several years ago and we are still building back. Paes stated that “we must have a good public school for economic growth.” The new Magee Elementary will open for the 2017 school year. Many improvements have been made at the Mendenhall schools. “Do more for your school,” explained Paes.
The Simpson Development Foundation sponsored the event.
