City Hall will be open Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon for the final round of absentee voting for the runoff election for mayor on Tuesday, and any absentee ballots that are being mailed to City Hall must be received by 5 p.m. Monday.
Biloxi voters, electing a new mayor for the first time in more than two decades, will be choosing between “FoFo” Gilich and W.S. “Windy” Swetman on Tuesday. The city’s 10 polling places will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
“We’re hoping that we have a huge turnout,” said Biloxi Chief Administrative Officer David Nichols. “All elections are important, of course, but this is the first time in 22 years that we’ll be electing a new mayor. That makes this historic.”
The election is open to all Biloxi voters — regardless of whether they voted on April 28. Said Nichols: “Having a big turnout will show that people are interested in Biloxi and our future.”
Hear an election discussion in City Desk webcast
Visit the Voter Information page
Weekend preview: Kellie Pickler and more
Music takes the top spot this weekend with concerts by Kellie Pickler, Three Dog Night, and others, but there’s also other good things in the works.
Of course, the multi-media “Katrina +10” exhibits are open at the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art, and you’ll find a cooking class at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.
See the entire weekend lineup
Council OKs Boomtown RV park
By Jerry Creel, Community Development Director
This week in economic development, the City Council voted unanimously to approve the expansion of the Boomtown Casino RV park. The 49 proposed RV sites in the expanded park were designed around the existing trees and will have extensive landscaping. Each site will have individual utility hookups for electricity, water and sewer. The site improvement plans have been submitted and should be approved sometime next week.
Also this week, the Zoning Board of Adjustments and Appeals voted unanimously to approve the full wall mural for the Reef Restaurant on Beach Boulevard. The mural will be painted by renowned artist Marty Wilson, and according to the restaurant’s owner Rob Stinson, it will be the largest original work of art in the State of Mississippi.
News and notes
Boney at K10: Biloxi Fire Chief Joe Boney today told a Katrina Cafe audience about the role of the Biloxi Fire Department post-Katrina and how the department is helping communities across the country. To see images from Boney’s presentation, click here.
Traffic Update: To see the Public Works Department’s latest report on street work — as well as the street-sweeping and police radar schedules — click here.
MGM Park update: Chief Administrative Officer David Nichols offers the latest on MGM Park in this week’s City Desk webcast. To listen to the program, which was recorded Thursday morning at Biloxi City Hall, click here.
