Take a ride around Caledonia these days, and you’ll be forced to notice something new.
The problem might be deciding which new thing to notice. On a rainy Friday afternoon, The Dispatch rode along with the town’s youngest alderman, Mitchell Wiggins, to see what’s happening.
At Cal-City, a new convenience store in town, residents can find just about anything they want. It is the latest project for local store owner Mike Atkinson, who owns shops throughout Lowndes County. His newest place sells everything from construction equipment, to cattle feed, to human feed, to fish bait and even biscuits — Atkinson said they sold 60 Friday morning.
The jack-of-all-trades store is something Wiggins, 40, said has been missing in Caledonia for some time. Now, locals won’t be forced to make an hour round-trip ride to Columbus to purchase piping, wiring and other hardware equipment.
“It’ll shock you what people come in here for,” Atkinson said.
Wiggins said his wife came into the store last week to get a pound of Cajun roast beef from Cal-City’s deli. A store had been at Cal-City’s location at 29 Main Street since the mid-1970s, but the building had been vacant for the past five years. Atkinson said in a couple of weeks, people will be able to get gas there, too.
“It’s a well known, established store,” Wiggins said. “I had someone come in and tell me ‘this store needs to be open again.'”
“It’s a very unique store. They’ve got a specialty niche I think will go over well in town.”
Over by the Caledonia school campuses on Wolf Road, Mike Atkinson’s son, Justin Atkinson, is getting ready to open up his pizza joint. Old Country Pizza Parlor had a soft opening Friday night, and Justin Atkinson said they are hoping to open officially Monday. He said the store was able to purchase much of its kitchen equipment from CJ’s Pizza in Starkville after that location closed. It is Justin Atkinson’s first foray in the restaurant industry, but he said he is excited about the undertaking and thinks the pizza parlor will be a fun place for families and children. They offer specialty pies and a bright atmosphere.
New public spaces
Off Wolf Road is where many of the new public undertakings in town can be found. There is the new Caledonia Elementary School, a $16 million project that is still in the foundation-laying stage. Construction is expected to begin in earnest this summer.
Across the street, off Bill Lawrence Circle — named for the town’s mayor — a new Caledonia Soccer Complex will be built. The city bought the land four years ago, according to Wiggins. Construction is expected to begin on the soccer complex shortly. The city received a $142,000 grant to build the 20 acre complex, and is still waiting on the money to be put into their coffers to begin building, according to Mayor Bill Lawrence. Much like the Cal-City store, Wiggins said the soccer complex will save locals gas and time.
“We’ve had so many families that go to Columbus three to four days a week for soccer practice,” Wiggins said. “We have to do what we can for our kids.”
Local kids and adults will benefit from the new Caledonia Community Center. It is located on the corner of Cedar and South Street. Exterior construction is complete, and once the weather cooperates, the inside can be furnished and finished. Lawrence said they are hoping to open the center June 1.
A vacant lot on the corner of Main Street and Church Street will soon be the home of the Caledonia Natural Gas. Construction will begin there this summer.
The Lowndes County Board of Supervisors recently approved the construction of a new District One fire station, which will house the Caledonia volunteer fire department. Last month, the department was upgraded in class. The state of Mississippi promoted the town’s department from a class eight rating to a class seven rating. This feat is more than a plaque on the wall; Wiggins said his home owner’s insurance has dropped 12 percent since the reclassification.
The estimated cost of the new Caledonia station, to be located at the corner of Lawrence and Main Street, is $275,000. Lowndes supervisors agreed to loan Caledonia $105,000 for the station, the construction of which will also begin in August.
Caledonia has been growing in earnest for decades, largely due to the public schools. Wiggins said the town has been noticing an increase in retail in the past three to five years. Lawrence said sales tax revenue in town has been up in the past six months.
With an influx in local construction projects, Cal-City might be able to survive on morning biscuit sales alone.
“I think we’re in good shape,” Lawrence said.
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