Ayers Reports On Progress In Coffeeville
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Coffeeville Mayor Brad Ayers addresses the Yalobusha County Board of Supervisors during a recessed meeting Monday at the Coffeeville courthouse.
COFFEEVILLE – Coffeeville Mayor Brad Ayers addressed the Yalobusha County Board of Supervisors Monday during a recessed meeting at the Coffeeville courthouse, thanking the board for its assistance with storm cleanup efforts inside the town limits following Ice Storm Fern.
The county has entered into memorandums of understanding with the towns of Coffeeville and Oakland allowing the county’s debris contractor, TFR Enterprises Inc., to remove storm debris and cut hazardous hanging limbs within the municipal limits of the two towns. Under the agreements signed in March, the county will cover the required 12.5 percent local match for the cleanup work inside the municipalities.
The remaining costs are expected to be reimbursed through disaster assistance programs, with the Federal Emergency Management Agency paying 75 percent and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency covering another 12.5 percent.
Ayers said Coffeeville crews continue working daily to assist with the cleanup effort by hauling debris to the county dumping site and collecting smaller scattered debris throughout town to help streamline the contractor’s work.
“I’d be remiss not to start by thanking each and every one of you for supporting Coffeeville like you have in this,” Ayers told the board. “Every day we still take at least three loads of the big debris to the dumping site,” Ayers said. “We’re also picking up a lot of the small debris around town so the county crews don’t have to stop here and stop there.”
As cleanup continues, Ayers added that the town has also begun returning to routine maintenance work.
“As spring gets here, two of our guys have started back on grass mowing and pothole duty,” Ayers said. “We’re trying to move on from just the storm.”
Ayers also provided supervisors with updates on several infrastructure and development projects underway in Coffeeville.
The town has begun installing new six-inch water lines along Elvira Jackson Street and Kennedy Street. The project was funded through grant money secured during the previous administration.
“That money was secured by the previous mayor, Mr. Shelton,” Ayers said. “We’ve wrapped up the paperwork and environmental studies and that project has begun.”
Ayers also reported on a potential federal funding project aimed at improving Main Street from the Okahoma intersection to the Front Street intersection.
Ayers said he recently met in Washington, D.C., with U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith and Sen. Roger Wicker to discuss securing approximately $700,000 in federal funding to relocate aging water lines running beneath the roadway. If awarded, the funding would come through a fiscal year 2027 federal appropriation.
“That money probably won’t get here until sometime in 2027,” Ayers said.
Once the water lines are capped, the Mississippi Department of Transportation could then repave that section of roadway, which is part of the state highway system.
Ayers also reported that construction on improvements to the Coffeeville park is expected to begin in late April. The project totals about $500,000 and will include approximately $160,000 in new playground equipment.
“That’s something we don’t have a lot of in the town or the county,” Ayers said. “Kids will finally have some new playground equipment.”
In addition to infrastructure updates, Ayers shared economic development news with the board regarding the reopening of a grocery store in Coffeeville. Grenada businessman Chuck Li is renovating the building and hopes to opening in the coming months.
“The only delay has been the old freezers,” Ayers said. “He didn’t realize how bad those compressors were, but most of that has been fixed now and he tells me May is going to be the start time.”
Ayers said the store will feature a full meat and produce department and he encouraged residents to support the business once it opens.
“I tell people I know everybody likes Walmart, but if you can shop here, please shop here,” Ayers said. “We’ve got to keep this store.”
Ayers also told supervisors that a bank has expressed interest in opening a location in Coffeeville. The bank’s chief executive officer has already toured the town, though discussions remain preliminary.
“Nothing’s final at this point because of FDIC requirements,” Ayers said. “But they’re very interested.”
