Local town set to receive major upgrades to revitalize downtown area

KILMICHAEL, Miss. (WCBI) – Major upgrades are on the way to downtown Kilmichael.

The Bank of Kilmichael recently bought six storefronts with plans to revitalize the area.

“The buildings have been sitting empty for a while and we needed the space,” said Kent Mortimer, Senior Vice President at Bank of Kilmichael. “We inquired and were able to purchase the buildings and it’s all coming together now.”

Of the six buildings that were purchased, two will go towards the expansion of the bank.

“One for the board room and one for a training room, and then we are going to use the other building for storage,” said Mortimer.

Another set of buildings will be used for commercial purposes.

“We will fix up the facade of those buildings and rent them out to retailers, professional services, anybody that needs space for an office,” said Mortimer.

Also receiving a new upgrade is the town’s city hall.

Town leaders said the previous building wasn’t adequate enough to provide all of the services they needed.

As a result, they moved into a new building on the end of the street.

With the new renovations, Mayor Bobby Howell has his own office for the very first time, and there’s also enough space to seat everyone comfortably during board meetings.

“In this building we have a nice big area for our utilities department, we have a mayor’s office, the police department has an office they can work from,” Mayor Howell described. “We have a nice meeting area and handicap accessible bathrooms, so we just have a modern office building.”

Mayor Howell said this is a project that’s been in the works for a few months, and he hopes it breathes new life into the Montgomery County town.

“Most small towns like ours are senior citizens so your property tax, because of home state exemption, is not a strong, or a big area of revenue to depend on,” the mayor explained. “A retail dollar coming into a small town or city is very beneficial.”

Howell said he’s confident this much needed face-lift will attract new businesses and develop retail growth in the town.

Now both residents and town leaders are all eager about the potential benefits of this revitalization plan.

“I think it’s very exciting and wonderful,” said Mattie Turner, who lives in Kilmichael. “We really needed a change in Kilmichael. We would like to see more businesses come here, that would be more convenient for the residents who live here. We won’t have to travel so far out of town to shop.”

The Bank of Kilmichael said the project costs roughly $600,000, and they expect everything to be completed by the end of the year.

Anyone interested in renting space in the open buildings should contact the Bank of Kilmichael.