STARKVILLE — A once-vacant lot in downtown Starkville is quickly being transformed into the new site of the Starkville Community Market.
Construction continued this week on the property at Jackson and Lampkin streets. A crew from Gulf States Manufacturing was at the site Thursday and installed a 20-by-20 foot pavilion and nearby retaining wall — all made of American steel.
Meanwhile, Dylan Karges of the Starkville Area Arts Council worked a jackhammer along the edge of Jackson Street, crumbling existing building foundations and scooping out the rubble with a shovel.
The property, owned by East Mississippi Lumber Company, has been vacant since several buildings were razed in 1994. The foundations have cracked, concrete and asphalt have crumbled and many in town have called the lot an eyesore.
Karges and others have spent the past two months landscaping the site and hope to build a series of community gardens, along with statues constructed by Karges, bordering the property. Sections of cracked concrete will be removed and grass will be planted.
The plan is to complete a majority of the landscaping work before the Starkville Community Market opens for the season on May 15.
When asked why Gulf States donated a pavilion for the project, President Danny Coggins” answer was simple.
“How could we not?” he said, then gestured toward piles of overturned dirt and steel. “Look at this project. It”s going to be great for the community of Starkville. That”s for sure.”
Gulf States employee Charlie Swanson shared a similar sentiment.
“I think that, for a community to grow, you need corporate citizens to do their part and this is just our small step toward the business community getting involved in growing Starkville in the right direction,” Swanson said.
Market co-organizers Jeremiah Dumas and Tammy Tyndall Carlisle said they were looking to relocate from the market”s previous location on South Lafayette Street this year because, to operate, the roadway had to be closed, which hampered traffic to businesses along the block. Dumas, who also serves as Ward 5 alderman, is optimistic about the move.
“Not only is this a better site, but it will make this site look better and it give us a lot more flexibility to have a market,” Dumas said.
When the market opens, the lot will be populated every Saturday morning with vendors selling fresh, locally grown produce, artwork, crafts and baked goods, among other items. During its peak last summer, more than two dozen vendors lined the sides of South Lafayette Street.
The market also features live music, cooking demonstrations by local chefs and activities for children.
The city”s beautification committee is working with the Convention and Visitors Bureau, Downtown Business Association, Greater Starkville Development Partnership, Mississippi Master Gardeners, Mississippi State University Community Action Team, Starkville Area Arts Council, Starkville Community Theater and Town and Country Garden Club on the project. Plans are in the works to paint murals on several walls downtown.
The revitalization plan also includes the introduction of historical markers for significant buildings and districts within the city, downtown recycling containers, signs to direct visitors and citizens to primary destinations and a central information kiosk for further directions to business and governmental locations downtown.
“This is the first step, really, in a series of things we”re doing to try to transform the downtown area,” Dumas said.
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