As his two terms in office draw to a close, Mayor Parker Wiseman believes the local economy has seen tremendous growth in the previous eight years, adding that Starkville is a city where he is proud to continue life as a private citizen.
Wiseman’s second term ends June 30. He decided not to seek a third term.
Recalling a memorable quote from his first mayoral campaign to Starkville Rotarians at the weekly luncheon on Monday at Starkville Country Club, Wiseman said he would know we have arrived as a city when “we get more excited about doing something in the community than we do about stopping something in the community.”
Now, more than eight years later, he believes that day has come due to many growth factors.
Before Wiseman took office at age 28 as the youngest mayor in city history, Starkville’s facilities were “decrepit” at best, he said. However, in 2015, the new City Hall was unveiled, making Starkville home to some of the most modern city facilities in the state. The Mill at MSU Conference Center — a collaborative effort between the city, Oktibbeha County and Mississippi State University — was also completed in 2015.
Starkville is continuing to break ground on the “infrastructure of the 21st century,” Wiseman said, noting the near completion of the $5.4 million police headquarters on Lampkin Street in the former city hall and the recent groundbreaking of the $34 million Partnership School at MSU, where Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidate School District sixth and seventh graders will attend.
The city has also increasingly become a tourism destination, Wiseman said, adding tourism spending is up 56 percent from eight years ago.
“Some of that is related to the performances of athletic teams at MSU, but now we don’t have to hang on every swing of athletic performances and worry which one is going to sink our economy,” Wiseman said. “The reality is that there is enough to do here and enough of a draw outside of those teams. We are now poised to remain a center for tourism activity.”
In addition to increased tourism spending, sales tax revenue is up 39 percent and property value in the city is up 30 percent from the beginning of Wiseman’s first term. More than 40 percent of the city’s roads have been paved since 2009, he said, and an additional 17.5 miles in bike and pedestrians lanes have been added.
“What this means is that we are able to do things and have things like state-of-the-art facilities, sound infrastructure and elite operations,” Wiseman said. “This is why we want to be a city that is constantly growing and thriving. We always have to look out on the horizon for what is to come.”
A city only has two choices from here, according to Wiseman — grow or decline.
“Continue to be the community that never stops looking at what the next opportunity is,” Wiseman said. “And continue to constantly pursue improvement of the city.”
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