Lumberton Informer

There's an old saying, “Ignorance of the law is not an excuse." Tonight, Mayor Winston was determined to go into executive session to discuss potential cuts in personnel; despite the fact that it was not within the guidelines of the Open Meetings Act. But the entire meeting was out of order. Winston refused to adjourn the meeting due to a lack of a quorum. Instead, he waited over eight minutes for the other alderpersons to arrive in order to call the meeting in session.One thing that was evident tonight was the lack of knowledge possessed by our elected officials. They seemingly didn't know the guidelines for going into executive session. According to the Mississippi Sunshine Laws,   (4) A public body may hold an executive session pursuant to this section for one or more of the following reasons:   (a) Transaction of business and discussion of personnel matters relating to the job performance, character, professional competence, or physical or mental health of a pers...

I called Charles Bock of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and he received the letters of concern I submitted. Thank you to all that signed the letters I printed and thank you to those that mailed their own. The good news is the letters got their attention and the MDEQ will be sending two representatives to address any questions or concerns the citizens of Lumberton may have regarding Rolling Recycling, LLC. The board meeting will be held Tuesday, July 1,2014 and prior to the meeting, there will be a public hearing at 5:30 to discuss the increase in water and sewer rates. Tonight, there will be a budget hearing to make cuts in personnel. So far, the only department that's being cut is the police department. I guess Winston is going to get rid of the police department one way or another but in order to do so, he's going to need the board members approval. Tonight's meeting will be at 6:00. Margaret Meade once said. "Never underestimate the power of a...

There was a special called meeting held tonight. There was one agenda item...."Order to discuss and vote to have an Executive Session to discuss personnel matters for the Cit of Lumberton." The mayor and board members went into the back room and held a 45 minute discussion about something. We don't know what was discussed because Mayor Winston never exited the executive session to inform the citizens about what they decided to discuss; which is an ethics violation. I guess it's time to submit formal complaints because these violations are not getting addressed or directed. When the board members exited the session, the city clerk was instructed to read what was discussed. After 45 minutes of discussion, the board decided they're going to make budget cuts in every department and they will be meeting again on Monday, June 30, 2014 @ 6 to make a decision on the proposed cuts prior to the regular meeting that will be held the following day. Last I heard, the City of...

So much has been said about Lumberton and rarely is there any solutions offered. It's easy to marginalize a city when only the bad elements are presented. I have been told that I focus on too many of Lumberton's problems and that I don't spend enough time highlighting the good events taking place in Lumberton. I must admit, I'm not always the bearer of good news; I usually leave that for the Sunday edition of the Hattiesburg American . We all want a better world; a better Lumberton but how do we go about achieving that feat? I think some of our most valuable resources are either overlooked or left unnoticed. I recently saw a post where some from the younger generation were sharing their views of Lumberton and it was astonishing to see their view of our once beloved city. I have always been one that will say all sorts of things about Lumberton. I try to balance the ups and the downs but it seems that there are more down moments that uplifting moments. I suppose I c...

Who are you trying to convince? Me or yourself. I get a site traffic report every week. Keep lying to yourself.

Sometimes I wonder, what's the point in blogging. There are factions that want to say I am what's wrong with Lumberton. Really??? The fact that I'm attempting to shine the light of accountability on those who said they are there to serve the citizens has turned me into a problem. Every time I feel discouraged, I recall an excerpt from The Soul of Black Folks by W.E.B. DuBois. BETWEEN me and the other world there is ever an unasked question: unasked by some through feelings of delicacy; by others through the difficulty of rightly framing it. All, nevertheless, flutter round it. They approach me in a half-hesitant sort of way, eye me curiously or compassionately, and then, instead of saying directly, How does it feel to be a problem? they say, I know an excellent colored man in my town; or, I fought at Mechanicsville; or, Do not these Southern outrages make your blood boil? At these I smile, or am interested, or reduce the boiling to a simmer, as the occasion may require...

as Pastor of Sweet Beulah Missionary Baptist Church.I don't know if this move was spiritually or politically motivated. According to my sources, Winston used his resignation announcement speech to discuss the "dump" (his words not mine). He said, allegedly speaking of course, that the people that were funding the dump had plans to also purchase the Custom Precast property to bring some jobs to the area but since there are citizens opposing the dump; they've changed their minds. I guess there's always room to throw in a little extortion; even from the pulpit. Before now,there wasn't anything mentioned about any other developments. It's interesting that once the plan was exposed;other tactics are now being employed to garner support. For quite some time, there has been rumors that Winston wanted to have the Baptist members convert to a Seventh Day Adventist church but those rumors have yet to be verified. There are some that may be wondering why this ...

The other day I blogged about the placement of the waste site and it caught the attention of News 7. The board meeting was filled with people concerned about the proposal. The mayor and several board members tried to say that the matter was blown out of proportion; saying the waste site will be located on Yawn School Road and not in the South Lamar Industrial Park. Well, I gave the wrong location but I was blogging on very limited information. I apologize to my readers for the misinformation but the fact that the "owner" of Rolloff Recycling Center does not know the location of the site raises some red flags as well. I was working with limited resources but how in the garbage truck can a person purchase a plot of land, have the deed to the land and not know the address or location of the land that he purchased. Fred Martin, the owner of the Rolloff Recycling, LLC, does not know if his so called recycling center will be on 380 Yawn School Road or 489 Yawn School Road. Also, ...

On Thursday, June 19, 2014, the City of Lumbeton will bid an earthly farewell to Rashod "Rody" Henry. As a four-year starter, Henry helped Lumberton High to a 47-5 record, including state crowns in 2004 and 2005. He set a state playoff record in 2006 when he ran for 437 yards and four touchdowns in the Panthers' 32-13 win over Kemper County. He also was a three-time state champion in the 200-meter dash and won another state title in the long jump. He had signed to play football at the University of Southern Mississippi, but signed a professional baseball contract after being selected by the Atlanta Braves in the 28th round of the 2007 amateur draft. He appeared in 44 games with the GCL Braves over two seasons, hitting .227. The death of Rashod Henry, who was affectionately referred to as Rody, has sent shock waves throughout the community. In tribute to the life he lived, I would like to share some words of encouragement from some of his friends and family. G...

I guess we can stop trying to convince everyone that no one is reading the blog. I was prepared to post a review of last night's meeting but I'm waiting for Charlie Bock to send me some paperwork regarding the amended solid waste plan the Lamar County Board of Supervisors submitted to the MDEQ to accommodate the recycling site on Yawn School Road. It seems that the County has been working on this move for quite some time. The looming question I have is "if this is a County project, why do they need the City of Lumberton to sign off on the project"? Wouldn't an agreement of that nature require an Interlocal Agreement or Resolution? Unless, of course, the County want Lumberton to be liable for any environmental hazards that may occur after this facility is opened. Keep in mind, the area is not accessible via the interstate. So the possibly abestos filled material will be transported through our city and there's no type of traffic flow planon file. But I said ...

So now they're saying “Jonathan got it wrong." Here we go again with the shoot the messenger mentality. At this juncture, it really doesn't matter if the proposed dump site is going to be located in the South Lamar Industrial Park or on Yawn School Road. What matters is the citizens of Lumberton were not properly notified of what was going on. This is the information age and they're still posting notifications on the back wall of the library and in a corner in the post office like it was 1954. Today people have tablets, smart phones and computers; they're no longer required to go to the library to get books. As a matter of fact, one can get postage online as well; so a trip to the post office is also a thing of the past. So for those that are trying to downplay what I'm saying because the address on the permit does not match the location mentioned on the site are comparing apples to oranges. The fact remains, the County has plans for a dump site in this area...

Tonight the Mayor and Board of Alderpersons will be holding a special called meeting. Part of the agenda will include a discussion regarding the waiver Warren Byrd wants signed to have the South Lamar Industrial Park used for agricultural purposes. Once the waiver is signed, Lamar County is not longer contractually obligated to use the land for economic development. There's already an application on file to use part of the area for a recycling center and Byrd wants 130 acres of the park to be used for housing cattle. It is imperative that you voice you concerns regarding this use for this site. The application to the MDEQ (Mississippi Department of Enviromental Quality) had been filed and in order to get a public hearing on the matter, we must submit our objections in writing. Below is a copy of a letter I submitted, you can write your own or feel free to use the one I provided. The letters must be received by July 12, 2014, in order to be used for consideration. The letters mu...

There's an old saying: "Beware of the half truth. You may have gotten hold of the wrong half." A half-truth is a deceptive statement that includes some element of truth. The statement might be partly true, the statement may be totally true but only part of the whole truth, or it may utilize some deceptive element, such as improper punctuation, or double meaning, especially if the intent is to deceive, evade, blame or misrepresent the truth. It seems that the more Warren Byrd talks, the more he reveals his true intentions. Just a day after I blogged about the application for the trash dump (or as they like to call it, a recycling center) to be placed in the new industrial park, Rolloff Recycling Center, LLC completed their application to the MDEQ (Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality) for approval of the site. In an effort to show that they are trying to find ways to utilize the 290 acres of fallow land, Warren Byrd continues to give interviews, hoping to s...

I recently posted a review of the former mayors of Lumberton and entitled the post "From Greatness to Grazing". I suppose I posted too quickly. Had I known what I know now, I would have entitled the post, "From Greatness to Garbage." In the last two days, I found out that your beloved mayor, Ben Winston, has been meeting with District 2 Supervisor, Warren Byrd, trying to get the new industrial park turned into a garbage dump. Allegedly speaking of course. The 290 acres of land was designated for economic development; that was one of the primary reasons why the City of Lumberton sold so many acres of land for $99,000. Over the past few weeks, Mayor Winston and Warren Byrd has making their cases for getting the waiver of released signed but there was a snag. Before the deal could be inked, several aldermen, to my surprise, questioned the move and that caused a delay in removing the clause requiring the property to be used for economic development; which would all...

What happened to the City of Lumberton? When did the shift take place? When did elected officials become more concerned with their own motives instead of looking out for the best interest of their constituents? The City of Lumberton deserves full representation from the mayor and the board of alderpersons; competent and spirited leadership that’s driven by bold ideas and grounded in good judgment. This is how the American dream is built. As I reflect on the past, I will try to show where the paradigm shift occurred. THE GARRAWAY ADMINISTRATION The other week, I starting reading the blog of former mayor, Bobby J. Garraway. By most accounts, he is probably the most admired mayor to ever serve in Lumberton. I did not know he was the one that went out and garnered support and resources for the facility that we now know as Cooper Industries. What happened to mayor's of this caliber? Here's an excerpt from his blog post regarding his quest to bring industry to the City of Lu...