Columbus Interim City Planner presents demolition request for Blight Program
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – The Columbus Council called a work session to discuss topics it will take up at October 7’s board meeting.
Interim City Planner George Irby presented to the council a request for the first demolition through the Blight Program.
Irby said they had to advertise for demolition contractors, and they got two bids back.
Today, Irby asked the council to award the demolition of the first home to the lowest bidder, which the council voted to do.
Irby said this is just the beginning, and there will be many more to come after this.
He said this is the first move in cleaning up the city, and he says he feels like it will be a flagship for other communities to establish as well.
“First of all, Mississippi has this image of run-down homes. Every city in this state could use a program like this. I talked to several people to see how they can get it started, but what it will do is help change our image. It will help the community feel even better about where they live because you’re going to get rid of some of these properties. And it’s a start. It’s not a cure-all for everything, but it’s a start. We hope others will emulate it. So, we’re going to try to make this project work so that others will want to emulate it,” said Interim City Planner George Irby.
Irby said the grant will be available for 6 years and will end in 2031.
Irby said the next step will be to notify the person who got the bid, and they’re hoping to get started as quickly as possible.
