CD: Cadence Bank laying off local workers

JASON BROWNE

Cadence Bank could layoff as many as nine employees from its 11 Golden Triangle branches, a company spokesman said today.

Senior Vice President of Marketing John Boydstun said the Starkville-based bank is currently conducting productivity and efficiency studies aimed at reorganizing multiple aspects of company operations, including employees. The majority of the impact to employees will be restructuring job duties, but, “some employees will lose their jobs.”

“We don’t know specifically at which locations because we’re not at the point of finishing all reviews. In the Golden Triangle it could be somewhere around nine (employees),” said Boydstun.

He says Cadence managers and human resources officials will determine how many employees to lay off and when after the study has concluded. At that time the company will communicate to employees whether their jobs have been restructured or eliminated.

Boydstun says this is the first time in years Cadence has conducted an efficiency study on this scale. He declined to speculate how many total Cadence employees would be dismissed, or if those jobs would return.

“This is just part of dealing with the economic conditions that all businesses have been operating under in the last 18 months,” said Boydstun. “It’s always unfortunate if anyone loses their job in any business. We have to examine our business and see if there is duplication of areas and get things in the right perspective for our shareholders.”

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Good news: $751 million contract for Navistar

From: Dispatch Staff Report
February 17, 2010 4:02:00 PM

In a huge economic shot in the arm for West Point, the city’s near-idle Navistar plant has been awarded a $751.5 million contract to build more than 1,000 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles for the U.S. Marine Corps.

U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., today reported that the firm-fixed-price contract was awarded by the Marine Corps to Illinois-based Navistar Defense LLC for more than 1,000 Category I MRAP vehicles. The contract was competitively procured.

“The MRAP vehicles to be built at West Point will continue to support the strengthened U.S. military surge in Afghanistan,” Cochran, ranking Republican on the Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, said in a release. “MRAPs have saved hundreds of our troops from roadside bombs, and I am proud that a significant number of them have been built in Mississippi.”

“I am also pleased that our strong West Point workforce will be part of providing the Marine Corps with these life-saving vehicles,” he said.

Full article here.

CD: Bill to allow sale of Carrier Lodge passes House

JASON BROWNE

The State House of Representatives is back on board in helping Mississippi University for Women move some dead weight.

The House passed House Bill 977 Thursday, which would allow MUW to sell Carrier Lodge. Similar legislation died during last year’s session when the Carrier bill was lumped in with other measures which would have given all state universities the power to sell property without legislative approval. Nora Miller, vice president of finance and administration at MUW, says the omnibus bill met with contention and died.

Now the bill is back and Miller says she sees no obstacles to its passage.

If the Senate passes the bill and it’s signed by the governor, Miller says MUW will use the money to invest in technology or an energy project that could save the school money in the future. Such projects include replacing steam boilers installed in 1956 which are still used to heat some buildings or placing individual meters on buildings which can be monitored and controlled off-site.

“It depends on which hole we need to fill,” said Miller.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

CD: Three arrested with pound of marijuana

TIM PRATT

Three Oktibbeha County men were arrested Sunday by the Mississippi Highway Patrol on felony drug charges in eastern Lowndes County.

Orathio Deshaun Robinson, 29, of 1333 Timberline Drive, Starkville, was charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, a litter law violation, no proof of liability insurance and driving on a suspended license.

Charles Ferguson Jr., 30, of 1458 Rev. Ware Rd., Starkville, was charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and a litter law violation.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

CD: Change, often stormy, marks decade

DISPATCH STAFF REPORT

From triumph to disaster, the area has seen its share of headlines that still have impact.

Many have earned the area national attention — for both the good and the bad.

Here’s a look at some of the biggest stories of the past decade.

Ravaged by storms

In the past 10 years, Lowndes County alone has seen multiple storms and continues to recover from their wrath.

In January 2008, an F3 tornado tore a vengeful path through Caledonia, leaving leveled houses, school buildings in rubble, twisted metal and broken glass in its path.

Workers and concerned neighbors rallied around the town to help in recovery efforts.

While many have repaired or rebuilt, including Caledonia schools, others still have yet to reclaim their Caledonia homes. Caledonia Church of Christ, which was left as nothing more than debris, has been rebuilt, bigger and better. And Lowndes County School District continues construction on a combination band-art-vo-tech building, along with a new middle school gym.

In February 2001, straight-line winds tore across Lowndes County from Mayhew to Columbus, knocking down walls and destroying mobile homes, houses and an apartment building, and left behind $11 million in damage.

In November 2002, a string of tornadoes traveled across Lowndes County, leaving home after home in ruins and one person dead. The storm also devastated the campus of Mississippi University for Women, which has continued to rebuild over the years.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Photos: Walk-on alumni at Tuscaloosa WalMarts

Photo galleries of the BCS trophy at the Tuscaloosa Walmart

Al.com gallery

from Six Pack Speak (Warning- it is the Six Pack. Enter at own risk.)

CD: Missing habitat trailer recovered; suspects in jail

DISPATCH STAFF REPORT

Two arrests have been made in the recovery of a missing trailer belonging to the Columbus Lowndes Habitat for Humanity.

Lt. Tony Perkins of the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office identified the suspects as Chadquian Emerson, 28, of 2230 Rivera Road in Starkville, and Ibe Conbingo Walker, 32, of 52 Sunny Lane in Columbus.

Perkins said Emerson has been charged with felony taking of a motor vehicle and grand larceny. Walker has been charged with burglary of a business.

“Emerson was arrested Wednesday, and Walker was arrested Tuesday. Both remain in custody in the Lowndes County Adult Detention Center,” he said.

Both Emerson and Walker are on probation, and aren’t eligible for bond, Perkins said. Details on the suspects’ previous arrests were not known at press time. The two are scheduled for an initial appearance in Lowndes County Justice Court.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

CD: MUW supporters to rally in Jackson

JASON BROWNE

The Friends of The W are headed to Jackson.

The joint venture between Mississippi University for Women’s two alumni associations will convene Monday in Jackson for Capitol Day, a dual event aimed at showing legislators the unity behind MUW.

The first event, a meet-and-greet with legislators, will take place from 3-5 p.m. in the first floor rotunda at the Capitol building. The second, a reception honoring legislators, will be held at the Old Capitol Inn from 5:30-8:30 p.m.

Tickets for the reception are $25 for friends and alums, $10 for faculty and staff and MUW students with I.D.

Betty Ruth Hawkins of Waveland, an Friends of The W member and lead organizer for Capitol Day, said the trip will give MUW supporters a chance to speak with the lawmakers who will decide the school’s fate and “show the strength of support The W has.”

The tradition has been carried on by MUW’s charter alumni group, Mississippi’s First Alumnae Association, since the 1970s, but takes on special meaning this year. Whereas in the past the event has primarily given MUW alums the chance to thank legislators for their work, this year will focus on keeping the school independent.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

CD: Lowndes County schools to resume classes Friday

DISPATCH STAFF REPORT

Local school districts canceled school for today, but Friday’s plan is hinged on the severity of winter weather — snow, freezing rain and sleet — predicted for today.

Officials with the Columbus Municipal School District were out at 4:30 this morning checking road conditions to determine if buses could run. By 5:30 a.m., school officials had decided to close for the day.

But plans for Friday are still up in the air. CMSD Superintendent Del Phillips is meeting with transportation coordinators at 4 p.m. today and will make a decision from there, said Janet Lewis, district spokeswoman.

The district will notify parents of closures via Falcon Phone Blast messages. Employees will be notified by e-mail; television and radio stations will carry the announcement at 6 a.m.

Lowndes County School District Superintendent Mike Halford said Lowndes County schools expect to resume a normal schedule Friday.

Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.

Steve Mullen on MUW

CD Editor Steve Mullen has a good column on the problems facing MUW- aptly titled “A Cold Day for the W.”

One solution I haven’t seen anywhere- let it turn itself into a private university. The state could give the W it’s buildings and land in return for cutting it off from the state coffers. They could make a go of it and call it whatever they want with no oversight from the State legislature or the IHL.

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