Sun Herald (Biloxi, MS)
2007-10-10
Page: C2
The sweet sight of success in South Mississippi
Once again we would like to pause and review a flood of good news that has been reported in the Sun Herald recently.
We'll begin at the Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport, where three airlines have announced new nonstop service to South Mississippi.
American Eagle, the regional affiliate of American Airlines, will begin nonstop flights from Gulfport to Chicago's O'Hare International Airport on Dec. 13.
Myrtle Beach Direct Air plans to begin nonstop flights from Gulfport to Florida's St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport on Dec. 20.
And beginning Dec. 5, Skybus Airlines will offer daily nonstop service from Columbus, Ohio, to Gulfport.
Airport executives shared credit for landing these additional flights with the Harrison County Tourism Commission and the Gulf Coast Business Council.
Airport patrons will soon enjoy an expanded terminal and, sooner rather than later, a new parking garage as well.
And the airport is about to open a new USO lounge to accommodate the many members of the armed forces who use the facility each day. If you would like to assist the USO, contact Felice Kelly, USO Gulf Coast programs manager, by telephone at (228) 575-5224 or via by e-mail at fkelly@uso.org.
The Jackson County Board of Supervisors has joined the Pascagoula City Council in requesting the U.S. Navy to postpone plans to scrap the USS Ticonderoga. The delay will help efforts to move the ship, which was built in Pascagoula, to a berth on the Singing River as the centerpiece of a maritime museum.
Upstream from Pascagoula, Gary and Twila Lee of Escatawpa have donated a half-dozen parcels of land along the Singing River to the Land Trust for the Mississippi Coastal Plain. We take particular pride in the Lees generosity since it was prompted by a letter to the editor by Linwood Grierson of Moss Point published in the Sun Herald in February.
Mien Tran's retail and residential project on Jeff Davis Avenue may be the catalyst Long Beach needs to recover from catastrophe. Before it was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, Tran's building two blocks from the beach housed a flower shop, a realty office, an attorney's office and her own formal shop. She now plans to spend more than $6 million to replace it with a 34,000-square-foot building with French Creole-style architecture that will feature retail businesses, office space and condos.
The project has been approved by the Planning Commission and the Board of Aldermen, which recently adopted a Smart Code for the city which encourages this type of development. Coupled with a grant from the Mississippi Development Authority to make street and sidewalk improvements on Jeff Davis, Tran's commitment to come back below the tracks "is in tune with what we're wanting to do downtown," said Mayor Billy Skellie.
The Coast Young Professionals underscore their civic involvement with sponsorship of a political forum from 5:30 to 7 tonight at the Saenger Theatre in Biloxi. The forum is open to the public and features candidates in two races of vital importance to South Mississippians - lieutenant governor and transportation commissioner from the southern district.
Gulfport has moved to preserve the Legislature's intention to maintain Mississippi 605 as a scenic roadway by withdrawing permission for two huge billboards along the newly constructed road.
The intersection of Popp's Ferry and Cedar Lake roads in Biloxi is sizzling with development. And we salute the developers of The Shoppes at Nord du Lieu shopping center there for adding architectural features to enhance the character and visual appeal of their property.
Hull by hull, the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources expects to have most of South Mississippi's waterways free of hazards to navigation by year's end.
And so it goes. Day after day, there is mounting evidence of our progress.
It is real. And it is quite a sight.
As you can see for yourself.
Look inside today's Sun Herald for the ultimate guide to the new Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport
