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Daily Corinthian
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Vol. 118, No. 205
• Corinth, Mississippi • 22 pages • 2 sections
Budget plan has no tax rate change BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
The city of Corinth’s proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year will make no change to the property tax rate. The Board of Mayor and Aldermen held a special meeting
Thursday morning to continue working on the budget. It goes to a public hearing in Tuesday’s regular meeting but will not be ready for adoption until a later date, said City Clerk Vickie Roach. Among the details still to be
determined is a possible pay raise for city employees. Roach is projecting little change in revenue in the coming year. Although sales tax is currently enjoying an upward trend, she told the board she does not look for this year’s
growth to be repeated at the current levels next year. And, while preliminary numbers from the tax assessor’s office show the city has experienced some increase in assessed value, an increase in homesteads will reduce the overall tax base,
resulting in a mill generating a little less in the coming year. The board worked through the requests for outside agencies and left most unchanged. Two, however, are getting onePlease see BUDGET | 6A
Caldwell & crew accept icy challenge BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
If there’s ever a time to get doused by a bucket of icy water, it might as well be 5 p.m. on a sweaty August afternoon. That’s what happened to Circuit Clerk Joe Caldwell and his deputies on Wednesday as the ice bucket challenge, which has been sweeping the nation, found its way to the steps of the Alcorn County Courthouse. It is intended to raise awareness about ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), also commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, and encourage donations to help the cause. “It was quite chilly there for a moment,” said Deputy Clerk Sherra Green, after she and
Staff photo by Jebb Johnston
Please see CHALLENGE | 2A
Getting soaked are (from left) Crystal Starling, Heather Boyer, Joe Caldwell, Kalee Eaton and Sherra Green. Pouring the buckets are (from left) Tom Sweat, Gary Ross, Morgan White and Jody Aldridge.
Kossuth Middle School gym gets facelift BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com
KOSSUTH — Football is king this time of year. That isn’t keeping Kossuth Middle School from looking forward to letting it fly come basketball season. KMS has reason to rush the hoop year. A different looking gym will greet KMS fans when roundball seasons tips off in around two months. An all new floor and freshly painted walls and bleachers have made the gymnasium look like a new place. “The gym has so much tradition,” said KMS Principal Sam Roberts. “When I got here last year, I could tell how much people loved it.” Roberts hatched a plan to make the gym more modern over the summer. “We repainted everything after the floor was scraped all the way down to the wood,” he said. Gerald Parks and Terry Dalton with Parks Hardwood were in charge of the project which took a little over a month to complete. “They did an excellent job and I can’t thank them enough,” said Roberts. The gym floor is very similar to the LSU Tigers basketball floor. Kossuth’s floor is now a brighter color with the three-point area stained a dark color. Both free throw circles are done in Kossuth maroon and a white Aggie head is now at
Book proceeds help museum BY ZACK STEEN zsteen@dailycorinthian.com
Staff photo by Steve Beavers
Kossuth Middle School coach Chris Byrd (left) and principal Sam Roberts discuss some of the improvements made to the gym. See additional photos on Page 2A. center court. The bleachers have been painted all gray and the walls have also been repainted. Each sideline has been stained along with the word Aggies on both baselines. “It has been a process and we still aren’t finished,” said the principal. “I am very happy the way it has turned out and hope the Kossuth family appreciates it.”
Both middle school coaches approve. “It’s like a new gym and it plays like one it too,” said boys coach Chris Byrd of the no dead spots on the floor now. “The gym brings back memories of when I played here,” said Angie Morelock Malone, who was a member of the Lady Aggies in the early 90s. “The kids really love
Index Stocks......8A Classified......4B Comics......9A State......5A
it too because it’s so much brighter.” Kossuth will get an extra opportunity to showcase the gym when it hosts the TriCounty Tournament in 2015. “This gym has such a history about it that I wanted to see it done for the students and former students,” said Roberts. “I haven’t heard anything but positives about it.”
IUKA — During John Marshall Stone’s 12-year tenure as Mississippi governor in the late 1800’s, he set standards for honesty and integrity — two things that have rarely been matched by other politicians. Before descending on Jackson, Stone left his mark on Tishomingo County as Iuka mayor from 18661868. Author Ben Earl Kitchens has now released a new Mississippi history book detailing the life of Stone. “John Marshall Stone, Mississippi’s Honorable and Longest Serving Governor” describes one of Mississippi’s political figures during one of the state’s most critical and tumultuous times following the Reconstruction era. Stone used his leadership skills and business acumen to help pull Mississippi out of the depths of social and financial mire. Kitchens will be in Iuka for a book signing event this weekend as part of the Iuka Heritage Festival. The author will be at the Old Tishomingo County Courthouse on East Quitman Street at 6 p.m., today and at 10 a.m., on Saturday. All books sold during the festival will benefit the operation of the museum. “Little has been written about the scope of the monumental services Mr. Stone provided to Mississippi,” said Kitchens. “All of Please see BOOK | 6A
On this day in history 150 years ago
Weather....10A Obituaries......6A Opinion......4A Sports....12A
The Democratic National convention convenes in Chicago. The keynote address is given by copperhead Clement Vallandigham, a man who had been banished to the Confederacy, but had been allowed to quietly reenter the county in June.
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