Vicksburg Mayor holds Q&A concerning animal shelter, housing project and more

On Friday, Vicksburg Mayor George Flaggs, Jr. sat down with Vicksburg Daily News for a Q&A session addressing several projects and concerns.

The hot topics for the Q&A center around National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) housing funding and the funding for the Vicksburg Animal Shelter.

Q&A Session

NAACP Housing Project

On Oct. 7, Flaggs announced a partnership between the City of Vicksburg and the NAACP to create a Neighborhood Housing Revitalization Program.

A letter was sent by Flaggs on Oct. 19 to Aldermen Michael Mayfield and Alex Monsour, informing them of his plans to recommend the city enter a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the NAACP with aims to combat the housing impacts felt by the pandemic.

The City of Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted to partner with the NAACP for a Housing Revitalization Initiative on Oct. 25. The Board allotted $300,000 of ARPA funding to revitalize homes within the City of Vicksburg.

This funding will be used to refurbish homes that are in disrepair, repair roofs, beautification and other enhancements to inspire residents to stay in their communities, rebuild them, maintain them and attract new businesses to the area.

The City set eligibility requirements for applicants that wish to apply for the grant. Once an applicant is determined eligible, the NAACP will have sole discretion to determine which properties are refurbished.

Vicksburg Animal Shelter

The subject of the animal shelter has been a very passionate topic for many within the area.

The outdated facility on Old Mill Road in the Kings Community has been plagued for years with flooding and flash flooding and the aging unit continues to struggle with the volume of animals that come through there.

Last year, the new animal shelter facility for the City of Vicksburg was approved by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen.

The top-of-the-line facility was expected to cost close to $1 million with the estimated cost range to be from $993,000 to $1.4 million.

Tensions around the subject eventually led to Mayor Flaggs removing himself from the discussion for a time.

On July 1, several citizens expressed concerns surrounding the situation and opted to raise those concerns in a Town Hall meeting. The plan was to request accountability for the project, a plan and input from citizens on where they want the shelter to be located, as well as what they expect from the Board of Mayor and Alderman.

Flaggs soon responded with dismay concerning the tone of those organizing the effort, expressing his views on how it seemed disrespectful to hold the meeting at the same time he and the aldermen are to be sworn back into office.

In August, the Board voted to approve advertising for bids for the new Vicksburg animal shelter facility, allowing the project to move forward.

Earlier this month, Flaggs held a Q&A session for the project, stating that funding the shelter “has come to a point where we need public input.”

How to ask your questions:

You may ask your questions in the comments section during the live, or you may send them to our Facebook page or may email them to info@vicksburgnews.com.