STARKVILLE – There was no white smoke drifting from the chimney above the offices of the Greater Starkville Development Partnership on Thursday afternoon.
The GSDP discussed the open position of chief executive officer, during executive session of its regular board of directors meeting Tuesday and board chairman Steve Langston told the media not to expect any information.
Sure enough, when the board finished its executive session, Langston had little to say.
“At this point, there’s not really much I can tell you,” he said. “I’d say that we would have a plan for what we want to do settled by the middle of July, but that’s really all I can say.”
A board member, who did not want to be identified, said there have been no interviews for the position, which has been vacant since March, when the board voted to dismiss John Maynard.
Asked if the two-month vacancy has resulted in lost opportunities for the GSDP, Langston said: “I’d say it’s more a matter of the lost opportunities we’ve had over the last four or five years. There are a lot of things happening out there that we could be a part of, so we’re as eager to get this resolved as anyone. But we have to do it the right way.”
During the regular meeting, the Board heard a proposal from Starkville Bridges Out of Poverty. The charitable organization holds eight and 15 week seminars to help the poor develop strategies for overcoming poverty and entering the middle class, said the group’s director Tequilla Manning.
Bridges Out of Poverty is trying to solicit three-year corporate sponsorships at $5,000 per year.
There was a mixed bag of financial news for the group. While membership revenue is down $68,000, overall revenue has reached 183,000 toward its goal of $270,000.
The board also voted in a new member of the board. David Shaw, vice president of research and economic development at Mississippi State University, was voted to serve a three-year term.
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