Starkville is expected to hire two new, mid-level Starkville Parks and Recreation Department managers next year after finalizing job descriptions for the new positions and approving their respective advertisements Tuesday.
Aldermen unanimously created positions for a new director of maintenance operations and director of recreation and sports. Both positions were set at a salary range of $41,000-$55,000 annually and will be advertised through the Sports Turf Managers Association and National Recreation and Park Association.
Ward 4 Alderman Jason Walker, who has advocated for the two new positions since they were recommended by Dalhoff Thomas Design Studio’s master planning efforts, said the city is expected to conclude the hiring process in January.
Looking forward to 2017, aldermen — both the current and incoming boards — are expected to address many issues identified in the Dalhoff Thomas report.
The report forecasts that Starkville’s parks system only provides about half of the acreage needed to support the city’s projected 2020 population and needs an additional 150 acres to meet demands in the next two decades.
Additionally, the firm rated more than half of the city’s eight public parks as in “poor” condition.
The consulting firm recommended several short-term goals, which included hiring a maintenance director, reorganizing operations, creating a parks advisory board of community volunteers invested in the system’s success, controlling unauthorized use of athletic fields and lights, and reviewing opportunities to contract out services.
The firm also suggested Starkville develop a long-term maintenance plan for its system’s aging equipment and facilities.
Walker said aldermen should push forward and establish the park advisory board this term.
“We can, at the very least, lay the foundation for this group to make it happen,” he said. “I’m looking forward to getting the new positions filled, getting this board started and really focusing on maintaining our system, because we all want to make our park system as good as it possibly can be.”
Wynn pulls Wal-Mart discussion
Aldermen were set to again discuss a proposed $1.35 million-maximum tax increment financing package for a Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market Tuesday until Ward 2 Alderman Lisa Wynn pulled the related items from the agenda.
The east Starkville development, which representatives of Wal-Mart East LP previously said hinge on the passage of the public subsidy, would locate near the Haven 12 apartment complex and La Quinta Inn and Suites if aldermen agree to fund TIF rebates for a public access road connecting the parcel to Highway 12.
Before Tuesday’s meeting began, Wynn said she would table the discussion until Nov. 15 at the request of the developer’s counsel.
Last month, aldermen voted down both the $1.35 million ask and a compromise Ward 5 Alderman Scott Maynard presented that halved the request.
Maynard and Wynn said they support the project because it will provide a grocery store to an under-serviced portion of Starkville and open up 30 acres for development.
Opposition to the request gained traction after residents questioned why Starkville would fund infrastructure improvements for a company that could afford such projects.
Ward 3 Alderman David Little also previously said the store would create many transfer purchases that draw away revenue from existing businesses.
Christiana Sugg, a member of the Ridgeland-based consulting firm Gouras and Associates representing the developer, previously told aldermen the Wal-Mart project is not likely to materialize without TIF support for the estimated $900,000-$1 million access road.
Gouras’ TIF report estimates the $14 million investment would create 150 construction jobs and 95 associate positions. Those permanent jobs were expected to create an estimated annual payroll of $2 million.
If completed, the facility is forecast to create $20 million in annual retail sales, while providing the city, county and school district with a combined $133,976.04 in additional property taxes per year.
Carl Smith covers Starkville and Oktibbeha County for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter @StarkDispatch
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