Columbus Matters

10/15/2024

We've had many requests for the paper that has recently been the subject of some controversy but we are out of printed copies from the edition way back in July. The article that inspired the controversy linked below [and the full edition is also available].

Ward 5 Councilman Jones was so outraged by this article that he laid baseless claims of racism at Columbus Matters and A Better Columbus.

He may have over-reacted. Those with reading comprehension skills will see the article mostly pertains to the Office of the Mississippi Secretary of State:

The Mississippi Regulation of Charitable Solicitations Act, enacted in 1991, authorizes the Secretary of State (SOS) to regulate charities soliciting funds in Mississippi. The SOS aims to protect citizens from unscrupulous nonprofits through a process that includes selecting charities for examinatio

09/18/2024

Breaking: Mayor Keith Gaskin announced he will not run for re-election.

09/07/2024

Consider Getting Invovled in the Golden Triangle Theatre!

NEXT WEEKEND! JOIN THE FUN AS A VOLUNTEER! Come help with a show, stay and watch, and get a GTT swag bag! We LOVE our volunteers!

Sign up here: https://forms.gle/Dxi3Ru3PCLoymhcBA

09/04/2024

There's still time to join as a sponsor. Support our First Responders!

08/30/2024

On May 10th, 2024, we reported: "The school board is accountable to nobody but those that appoint the board, the Columbus City Council. If the school board appears to have performed its job without due diligence the louder truth is the City Council has failed in its duty to oversee most of its appointed boards and commissions, including the school board.
Proponents of the bond boast that it won't raise taxes, but this conveniently glosses over the fact that a "NO" vote would actually eliminate the milage rate assigned to the expired bond issue and thus result in lower taxes for residents. By borrowing more money now, taxpayers will keep their same high rates."

CMSD 662 241 7400 Main Office said they do not have the Board Members contact information (and it's not listed on their website.) They did share the boards email addresses:
Cynthia Brown: [email protected]
Robert Smith: [email protected]
Jose Shumake: [email protected]
James Richardson: [email protected]
Telissa Young: [email protected]
Stanley Ellis (Superintendent): [email protected]

City Council & Mayor (who appoint the school board)
Ethel Stewart Councilwoman, Ward 1 [email protected] Cell Phone: 662-251-3841
Joseph W. Mickens, Sr. Councilman, Ward 2 [email protected] Cell Phone: 662-251-0724 Rusty Greene Councilman, Ward 3 [email protected] Cell Phone: 662-889-1912
Pierre Beard Councilman, Ward 4 [email protected] Cell Phone: 662-418-7329
Stephen Jones Councilman, Ward 5 [email protected] Cell Phone: 662-386-5022
Jacqueline DiCicco Councilwoman, Ward 6 [email protected] Cell Phone: 662-889-1913

08/19/2024

The City pays for at least two software systems to streamline communications and promote transparency, costing over $8,000 a month. At the last work session they discussed getting another one to help with "dilapidated properties and blight."

”The perception that there is a long waiting list of doomed houses the city cannot tear down isn’t quite true," the Code Enforcement Director said in Dispatch interview in March 2022. The oldest order for a demolition was about seven months... part of the delay is following proper protocols."

In the same article it was reported that the house at 215 11th St. N is one of 15 houses awaiting demolition and that the City would be caught up in a few weeks (April 2022). But it still sits today unsecured and rotting. The report left out is that City officials were notified in June 2020. There are many other properties waiting to be demolished. Whose checking up on the demo work that was completed in "two weeks?" (which is now over two years ago. )

Simple Solution. Use only one software system (SeeClickFix) since City Employees have already been trained (the city has had it since 2019) and the money is already invested. Eliminate the "User.gov" Software and others. Do not invest in yet another software system that accomplishes the same goal as SeeClickFix.

08/08/2024

Show your support to our First Responders by making a contribution to their September 6th luncheon honoring their work and sacrifices. (Event is for First Responders Only)

All First Responders in Lowndes County, please accept this as your invitation to be honored: Friday, September 6 at 11:30 at the American Legion. Share with other responders. Thank you for all you do.

06/28/2024

Find our papers in our newstands at A Better Columbus office: 1211 Main St., around town at many local businesses or Read online: https://columbusmatters.net/

Not on our Email List? Sign up: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/Tl6s6wN

06/28/2024

It's that time of year again. On Tuesday, the City Council will make an appointment for who serves on the CLW board.

From June 2023: he City Council is responsible for setting the compensation for the commissioners (32-43). In 2010, The Dispatch reported in an article that the commissioners received a salary of $300 per month and individual health insurance premiums the CLW valued the health insurance benefit at $450 per month (Note the $2,000 travel allowance was not considered compensation). The valuation of the health insurance benefit would have increased significantly since 2010. It is unclear whether the commissioners' performance and contribution to the public interest justify the benefits some commissioners receive. The compensation relates to the commissioners’ once monthly meeting at noon on the third Thursday at the CLW main office.

Latest Articles Mayor & Some on the Council Fail to File with the Ethics Commission admin 05 May 2022 City Council In Mississippi, all elect

06/26/2024

It may appear that Mississippi is going in the wrong regulatory direction by saying one thing and doing another. https://www.michaelwatson.ms/secretary-of-state-touts-tackle-the-tape-success

Beginning July 1, 2024, per H.B. 1344, all nonprofit organizations are required to file an annual report with the Secretary of State's Office.

Read more👉https://www.sos.ms.gov/press/new-nonprofit-annual-report-filing-requirement

06/13/2024

Bidding has opened on A Better Colubmus’s Fourth Annual Silent Auction. Funds go toward pay for their uber-local newspaper--Columbus Matters—that is free to the public, fees associated with public records requests, and legal fees to fight government oppression.

ABC has no paid staff and is a volunteer run. The non-profit group encourages civic participation and accountability by encouraging citizen involvement in local government.

“ABC is doing things that matter and seeking solutions. We need to make Columbus the kind of place people want to live in and move to and we have to understand that means welcoming ideas, diverse experiences, and having a civically engaged community,” said ABC President Leslie Sorrell, “We’re overwhelmed by folks’ generosity and support of our Silent Auction,” she continued.

Individuals and businesses have donated a wide variety of items, such as gift certificates to local restaurants, AirBNB’s, shops, and spas. There is a trip to Hopkins, Belize (the number one place in the world to catch the “grand slam” in fishing, a free DJ for an event, a day on a pontoon, and a1980 Vintage MG Convertible! Bidding is open to all, and donations are still being accepted.

The Silent Auction Link: www.32Auctions.com/ABCElection
Bidding Ends: June 20th.

A Better Columbus: 1215 Main Street, Columbus, MS 39701
Come Check Out the Convertible!

Donations: Allegro Med Spa, Blade’s, Bride & Groom, D&B Car Wash, Golf at Elm Lake, Greenaway Pools, Guns with Grady, Gypsy Luxury Tan & Spa, The Haven, Hopkins Inn & Day Spa, The Mill Home + Design, Proffitt’s Porch, Ranch House, River Rats, Sweet Peppers Deli, United Deli, & YMCA, Zachary’s.

06/06/2024

If you moved away from Columbus or a particular Ward for whatever reason, your opportunity to make a positive change is just an easy move and election away. The council members that chose to enrich themselves, simply because they could, should not be allowed to run unopposed. Mr. Bargain Hunt, who has declared he will run for mayor, has sufficiently lowered the bar making any ethical person relatively overqualified. The election fraud and voter fraud under the prior regime will be a distant memory. If you know somebody that you think would be a good candidate, let us know or have them get in touch.

06/05/2024

Bids are open! Please consider donating an item to A Better Columbus's Silent Auction. Don't have anything to donate? Your financial donation or bid helps us out!

Four years has flown by! We're looking for folks who would like to donate to our annual Silent Auction. Questions/More details: 662-497-6547 or [email protected]

If you haven't contributed this year, please consider doing so. We need your financial support. Be on the look out for an edition of Columbus Matters coming out at the end of the month.

Thank you to GUNS WITH GRADY for being the first donation!

05/15/2024

For bond. 1061
Against the bond 201

Before absentees.

05/14/2024

Election Update: Today is the Bond Election. It's a Yes or NO vote to determine if the Columbus Municipal School District is going to borrow $36 million. Make your voice heard. Be a part of the process! Polls are open until 7pm.

Reports from all seven precincts is that voter turn out is low. Poll workers report there is voter confusion as to where to vote, saying some folks have went to multiple polling locations before finding their correct voting place. Only one of the six places had the Resolution Board notice posted on their door.

Meanwhile, when people are calling the City Registrar to see where they vote, phones are going unanswered. When answered, the person does not know where the caller should vote no.

Do you want to report your numbers, give updates, or share your Election Day story? DM or Email: [email protected]

05/10/2024

With Election Day just around the corner on Tuesday, May 14th, the Columbus Municipal School District (CMSD) $36 million bond issue is drawing both concern and support from the community. As of late afternoon Thursday, a mere 143 voters had cast their ballots absentee, raising questions about civic engagement and the potential outcome of this critical vote.

Thus far, the bond has garnered overwhelming support from former mayor Robert Smith supporters, which may mean those are “yes” votes. (Smith serves on the CMSD board.) Proponents argue that the funding is desperately needed to address years of deferred maintenance within CMSD schools – a consequence of the district's lack of a proper maintenance plan. The bond would allow the district to borrow the necessary funds to make repairs, that should have already been done, and some upgrades.

How did the school facilities get into such a state? Doesn’t CMSD have a long-term maintenance plan to keep things in shape with plans for the future student population changes? Why did the school board scramble so late to replace the expired bond? These are all good questions, but the school board is accountable to nobody but those that appoint the board, the Columbus City Council. If the school board appears to have performed its job without due diligence the louder truth is the City Council has failed in its duty to oversee most of its appointed boards and commissions, including the school board.

Proponents of the bond boast that it won't raise taxes, but this conveniently glosses over the fact that a "NO" vote would actually eliminate the milage rate assigned to the expired bond issue and thus result in lower taxes for residents. By borrowing more money now, taxpayers will keep their same high rates.

This election has also raised eyebrows due to the return of Brenda Williams, the former City Registrar, who retired in June 2021. Some may recall, Registrar Williams was the orchestrator of the deeply flawed 2021 municipal election. As of now, she has received over $1,500 for her consulting services and her contract was not a matter approved by the City Council (in open session). Equally concerning is the fact that, at times, the absentee polling place has been open and staffed with a lone election worker (Ms. Williams) present.

As the Tuesday Election Day approaches, Columbus Citizens are urged to make their voices heard. Whether you support the bond as a necessary investment for parking lots and fire sprinklers or oppose it due to concerns over poor planning and lack of proper budgeting, your vote matters. Polls open on Tuesday, May 14th—don’t miss this chance to be a part of the process.

03/12/2024

Action Alert! A Special Meeting has been called for tomorrow morning at 9am at City Hall--the subject--annexation and the Mayor's Veto.

How much did the last annexation cost taxpayers?

03/09/2024

Happening Today at 12noon.