Donnie Caughman, executive director of the Simpson County Development Foundation, requested that the Simpson County Board of Supervisors fund the foundation at the value of one mill, approximately $216,000, for the upcoming budget year.
For the past two years the county has funded the Development District at .6 mills for their work in county economic development.
Caughman told the supervisors about recent updates which included plans to sell the property on Highway 43 that the district has owned for 20 years on which few viable offers have been made. The District and the Simpson County Development Foundation have been trying to secure options on property for economic development. The ideal property would contain a minimum of 100 acres, have access to rail and be convenient to Highway 49. Landowners of some property fitting those requirements have been unwilling to allow an option. Caughman said they are willing to sell at their price but are not open to negotiations other than selling, meaning no options.
He said that he has been in discussion with a California company that distills byproducts of pine trees and refines them into diesel and airplane fuel.
He reviewed population shifts and stated that most parts of the county have lost population since 1990, adding that Simpson County had lost 5.6 percent of its population with Magee showing the largest reduction. Caughman told the board that the state’s growth areas were the Gulf Coast and Olive Branch. He said, however, that it is just a matter of time before there will be more of an exodus from Jackson and he encouraged the county to consider land use plans as well as zoning options. He jokingly told the board that otherwise “you have a bunch of Cousin Eddies showing up and creating problems all over the county parking their RVs in nice neighborhoods.”
The District was to call a special meeting to start the ball rolling to sell the Highway 43 property.
Road Manager Ben Warren reported that the county has been spraying right-of-way and will have half the county covered this year, starting on the east side. Next year the remainder of the county will be sprayed. He reported that one of the county’s road graders has been down for a month and they have missed the prime time to be using that equipment and it appears that the rains are going to start back in. The county’s rock and seal project for this summer is almost 3/4s complete. They are in the process of moving to Shivers and should complete the work in Harrisville soon.
He also reported that landowners are not requesting the correct size of culvert needed and the county will not install them if they are too small. He also said there would be a minimum of 30 foot length.
In other business, county’s expenditures for plexiglass shields to prevent transmission of germs during the pandemic were denied by FEMA. It was estimated that $27,000 worth of barriers were placed in county offices.
Sheriff Paul Mullins reported to the board that four inmates had contracted Covid-19 but he was still able at this point to provide help to the sanitation department. He said they would continue to do so until they were notified by the state differently.
There was reported leaks in the building that houses the Sheriff’s Department as well as Justice Court. The insurance company was called to assess the situation when it was noted that the shingles which are architectural shingles were improperly installed. There was not a ridgevent on soffit vents. It was also noted that was not properly ventilation creating an issue with the warranty. The roof is eleven years old and the warranty is only for ten years. The report from the insurance company was going to be given to the engineer to see if there would be any adjustments on the cost of repair or installation of a new roof.
There was a request the Mississippi Department of Education and Patrick Flagg. Flagg is the director of the Southern Area for Compulsory School Attendance. He has requested the use of an office suite formerly occupied by the Department of Human Services and currently vacant. The county tabled the matter until some terms can be worked out with regard to utility and other issues. The same was decided on a request from Tara Dickerson and use of office space for the Mississippi Department of Education Early Childhood programs.
The board approved Tracey Brown Seghini being appointed through court order as Public Defender in Justice Court at the rate of $1,500 per month. Additionally a court order from Circuit Court made the county purchase a new different court reporting system in the amount of $4,995.
