MOVING FORWARD IN LOWNDES COUNTY
MULTIPLE CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN COLUMBUS AND LOWNDES COUNTY NEAR COMPLETION AMID THE PANDEMIC AND FOLLOWING WEEKS OF PROTEST, CENTURY-OLD CONFEDERATE MONUMENT IS TO BE RELOCATED
Despite the impact of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic, lots of construction projects - such as traffic improvements, community center renovations and a yearslong fire station construction - are nearing or have reached completion in Columbus and Lowndes County.
A century-old Confederate monument outside Lowndes County Courthouse will be relocated following outcry from local communities demanding the structure be moved. After weeks of local protests against racial injustice in light of a series of national and local movements, county supervisors unanimously voted to relocate the structure to Friendship Cemetery, where both Union and Confederate soldiers are buried.
CRAWFORD GYM REOPENS AMID THE PANDEMIC
After months of renovation, the Crawford Elementary School gym was finally reopened to the public in July as a multi-purpose community center. The facility was destroyed by the tornado that swept through the area in February 2019. The renovation project started in January and was finished by the end of May. It cost a total of $375,000. $350,000 of which came from a state Legislature-approved bond package last year. Lowndes County shouldered the rest of the cost.
The renovation replaced nearly everything inside the gym, including the damaged roof, walls, lights and the scoreboard for basketball games. A concession room was also added in the front of the facility. The gym now features new aluminum bleachers and a multipurpose hardwood-like floor. A playground and a pavilion for outdoor activities, which were both completed in June, have also been added outside the gym.
During the pandemic, the number of gym users is capped at 75, with different schedules set for younger children, teenagers and adults. Children between ages of 8 and 16 can use the gym between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., and those older can use it between 5 and 8 p.m. The facility is also disinfected twice a day, with once in the morning and another in the afternoon between gym uses.
DOWNTOWN COLUMBUS’ FIRST MINI-ROUNDABOUT UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Downtown Columbus may see its first mini-roundabout by the end of the year, as construction of the roundabout started in July and is expected to reach completion by November. The project, planned at the intersection of Second and Main Streets near Harvey’s restaurant, is part of a $5 million traffic improvement project along the downtown corridor that connects Main Street to Highways 82 and 182. The roundabout is aimed to slow down those who travel in and out of town at a high speed. Crosswalks will be built in all four directions at the intersection for pedestrians. To the east of the intersection, the four-lane roadway on Main Street will be reduced to three lanes, with a central turn lane.
The construction of the roundabout was approved in April and will cost a total of $761,000. An additional $100,000 will be paid to Neel-Schaffer Engineering, which will conduct inspections and testing on the site. The Mississippi Department of Transportation will shoulder 80 percent of the cost while the city bears the rest.
CONFEDERATE MONUMENT TO BE RELOCATED TO FRIENDSHIP CEMETERY
The Confederate monument that has sat outside Lowndes County Courthouse for more than a century will be relocated to Friendship Cemetery, where both Union and Confederate soldiers are buried, following a unanimous vote from the county board of supervisors in July. The vote followed weeks of local protests against racial injustice and police brutality following a series of events, including the police killing of Minnesota man George Floyd, the dismissal of the case of police killing of Columbus resident Ricky Ball and District 1 Supervisor Harry Sanders’ racist remarks against Black Americans.
The monument, established in 1912, aims to commemorate Confederate soldiers who fought in the South during the Civil War. The inscription on the monument labels the history as a "sacred heritage" and describes the war as a "noble cause."A stone statue of a soldier holding a flag in his left arm stands atop the monument.
Supervisors have picked a location within the city-owned Friendship Cemetery as the new home to the monument. The 32-foot tall, 16-foot monument will be set on a parcel near Confederate soldiers’ graves - a spot the city yielded to county ownership to facilitate the relocation. The county will submit several materials to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH) for the agency’s approval. The materials include a legal description and photos of the new site, assessment of the cracks and damages the monument suffered and plan on how to relocate the structure.
FIRE STATION ON AIRLINE ROAD NEAR COMPLETION
City officials expect the new building for Fire Station 4 on Airline Road to reach completion by Oct. 1 after the construction began four years ago. The project is estimated to be between $1.8 million and $2 million. The city will fund the project with a $700,000 capital improvement loan from the Mississippi Development Authority, $500,000 of insurance rebate funds and pay roughly $653,000 out of city funds. About $150,000 worth of work is done by firefighters of the station as in-kind donations, which reduces the financial burden on the city.
As of late August, the construction crew was working on the exterior of the building, pouring concrete and installing acoustic ceiling, and electricians will install the air conditioning systems as well as the lights.
11 STORM SHELTERS PLANNED ACROSS FIRE STATIONS IN COLUMBUS
The city is waiting for approval from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to build 11 storm shelters across the five fire stations in Columbus after it applied for a $60,000 grant from the federal agency. The agency will shoulder 75 percent of the grant, and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency and the city will each have to match 12.5 percent of the grant.
The 11 storm shelters, aimed to ensure the safety of emergency responders, will each house roughly 15 people. The main fire station will have three shelters and the four other stations will each have two. The shelters are estimated to cost $5,000 each, with a life expectancy of 30 to 50 years. Meanwhile, the city is prepared to enter a new round of grant applications to build more storm shelters.
‘RED HORSE” UNIT HELPS REPAIR DAMAGED ROAD ON CAFB
A group of engineers associated with the U.S. Air Force’s heavy construction unit - Rapid Engineer Deployable Heavy Operational Repair Squadron Engineers (RED HORSE) - are assisting the repairs of a 1.8-mile section of Perimeter Road at the Columbus Air Force Base. The route, which is used for patrol and recreational purposes, was identified in a recent survey as having deteriorated, with potholes in the ground. The estimated cost of the repairs is roughly $1.4 million. The engineers are assigned to the project as part of their troop training. The project, which has been going on for two and a half months, is estimated to reach completion by September 1.
STORY BY YUE STELLA YU
PHOTOS BY ANTRANIK TAVITIAN
