Jackson Jambalaya

It looks to me like they threw in a lot of wants in with their needs and hoped no one was looking. Brandon's current football stadium is fine for now. The new facility renovations at the stadium are only a couple of years old. I would vote for needed classrooms or schools, but not gym renovations and stadium replacement. I'm with Grumpy on this one.

I live in rankin co and will be voting NO on this bond issue. We are currently in an anemic economy (at best) and just the thought of dropping a huge bond issue on the taxpayers is just plain arrogant. When will govt officials show some restraint? They act like money grows on trees. I'm sick and tired of supporting govt (local or federal) wants not needs. I,as well as, a lot of other people are just trying to get by.

Keep in mind schools are overcrowded now and its going to get worse if you haven't driven through NE Jackson lately.

I'm for it.

While the economy is anemic. $60 bucks is not going to break the bank.

I am for education, physical health and for all students to have the opportunity to learn in a safe environment.

Additionally, creating a strong school system only enhances property values which more than compensate for the millage increase.

For those who don't know, Brandon High School has NO outdoor athletic facilities at it's campus whatsoever, except for a dirt practice football field and a just-constructed weight room.

The kids have to drive or ride over to the middle school field (former high school) for everything, for all sports. There is no parking around that school. When that field was built, the Brandon community was very small and all grades were in one location.

The kids deserve athletic facilities on their campus, as the other Rankin county schools have.

I'm for it. Keep my little piglets out of portables. I'll be voting YES and you should too if you want Rankin County to continue to grow and prosper. Crappy public schools equals crappy neighborhoods which leads to crappy neighbors, then you're screwed.

This is the way taxes should be levied -- by the consent of the people!

KF, when are they scheduling the vote? I was told that the school board was attempting to have the vote separate from the primary or general election. Do you know if that is the case? I read Farmer's comments to suggest that the timing is flexible which would support what I've been told about the bond issue vote.

This bond issue would increase my property taxes by approximately $350 annually. I don't have kids in school anymore. I have little trust in the school board and far, far less confidence in the administrators in the district office (unless we're talking about their competence for corruption).

Notwithstanding all that, I'll be voting for the bond issue unless the board tries to sneak the vote past us by putting it in a separate election.

The Founding Fathers were right. In order to vote, you had to be a property owner. It's real easy to say yes, raise their taxes when it doesn't come out of your wallet.

10.8 MILLION dollars to replace a high school football stadium is crazy. I bet that doesn't even include a $750,000 artificial turf.

Lower Lynn Weathersby's salery and keep his family off the payroll and we will save money without a Bond Issue....The RCSB spends like drunken sailors without any thoughts of saving money. Im against this one as there is other cst saving ways to generate funds with the budget already in place.

Municipal bond rates are at ridiculous low rates. This is a great time to issue a bond, in my opinion.

"10.8 MILLION dollars to replace a high school football stadium is crazy. I bet that doesn't even include a $750,000 artificial turf. "

It is to construct a new football stadium, soccer practice field, girls softball field and field house. There is NO facility at all at the Brandon High School.

All middle school and high school sports have one facility at the middle school. The soccer teams have to practice at the old Brandon Academy field (called the Ant Farm). The girls softball teams have to practice and play at the softball fields there at the old Brandon Academy, too.

11:38 Spending money to improve the practice fields on the Highway 18 campus makes sense and is safer than sending the kids all over town to practice. I could even support a field house and a softball/soccer complex. However, building a new football stadium on Highway 18 is a waste of tax money.

"improve the practice fields"

What practice fields. All they have is an area for football practice, dirt and grass. There is no field whatsoever there.

What is wrong with a football field AT the high school? There is no parking at the middle school, no room to widen the field for an appropriate soccer field (it's too narrow and nowhere to expand). They can't even put turf down there because there isn't enough space.

Brandon is a 6A sports school and deserves to have a field AT their school where they can play, and spectators can watch and have a place to park. Parking and traffic are a nightmare and very dangerous to pedestrians.

What say we pay off the last TWO bond issues before we saddle ourselves with another one.

Ok Steve, where do we put the children?

Enforcing immmigration laws will help.

I am voting NO to the bond issue. People are unemployed, gas is high, food prices are rising. Additionally, athletic fields are not at the top of my list of "needs." Our kids are not learning math, English, and science and our board wants athletic fields. We should concentrate on learning, not ballgames. Education is extremely important but I will not vote for any bond issue until we consolidate school districts and lower administration.

Why have any sport facilities at any public school.Maybe if we spent public money on education rather than sports, taxes would be lower and the "students" might even learn enought to be contributing members of society. This is also true of public higher education institutions.

8:14 PM. The only mention of classroom needs I see is the NWR use of trailers. Part of the last bond issue was used at NWR to construct a "performing arts" building.
Maybe a few classrooms should have gone up instead? Both of my children went to public school as I did. I am a big believer in public education. I have never seen a public school system that didn't want a new bond issue every couple of years. Be selective in how the money is spent. Show a REAL need for the funding and the public will support it.

only mention? I see 90% going for new classrooms and schools.

To all the ney-sayers, you are welcome to go to other spaces within the Metro area where schools are not a priority and investment has waned over the years.

In other words, head south of County Line, you will rest assured that no school bond issues will arise, however, you might find your valuable on special at the local pawn shop.

Education is a cornerstone of a successful society and to not fund this would be short sighted. The facts are, given I have children in school in Rankin, there is tremendous overcrowding, especially as the children rise through the levels of middle and high school.

I encourage all the spending under this proposal because a well rounded student: reading, writing, arithmetic, sports, arts, etc. is a valuable contributor to society. I'm not debating the percentages, if the plan is well thought out and addresses specific issues; it is a good idea.

And for those without kids, if you want to continue to have a vibrant community both socially and economically, you might reconsider, we are all going to grow old and someone is going to have to take care of us or at a minimum visit us.

You put the children in the shopping center on SpillWay Rd that is defunct. Renovating will be a hell of a lot less than building new. But of course even the Republicans seem to have a hand out from the feds when it comes to their backyard.

The only reason you want that renovated is for your own self interest you old codger.

REnovating is not the problem!! How many children do you think that area would hold after you add library, cafeteria, restrooms - all requirements? Also, that is Reservoir property with substantial annual rent. One of the reasons this property is still vacant Rediculous to even discuss!!

To Goldie - where do you get the information to support your statement that "our kids are not learning math, English or science". Rankin County Schools are rated "high performing" based on national criteria!

So where is all this growth coming from? Scott County, Smith County......Mexico?

@6:37. Census says...Hinds County and the City of Jackson!

The vote can not be on the November ballot as state law requires it be on a separate ballot completely and I do mean completely. Separate poll workers, machines, everything. Then there is the matter of split precincts. Every school bond issue usually has its own day.

This bond proposal can be resubmitted after its defeated, with the proper emphisie on the educational needs of the district.
The children will not have these classrooms for this school year.

This superintendent fatcat Weathersby's combined family rakes in about half a million from Rankin Schools tax funds every year. My property taxes in Brandon have already DOUBLED in 10 years on the same property. The people of Rankin county are rising up to reject this scam. Wake up Rankin-ites. VOTE "NO" on the bond issue ... and get a more ethical superintendent in 2014.

The Rankin County School Board has scheduled the vote for September 13. So the taxpayers of Rankin County are going to pay thousands for a special election only a couple of weeks before the November election. Why do you think the Board did that? Because they don't want people voting. They want to fly under the radar.

When the FIRE the person that signed off on 13000 bales ($80K divded by $5.00) I will think about it but still vote NO.

John Q, Citizen says-
I'll "share in the sacrifice" when I see reductions in school district administration salaries and benefits, or increases in those of classroom teachers. Weathersby can start by pulling family faces out of the public trough and actually showing some fiscal accountability before sticking out his hand for more money. No taxation without competent representation. Vote NO.

Publius says-
This bond issue doesn't pass the sniff test. Our Rankin County neighbor, Phil Bryant,supported legislative action to reduce funding for public schools, necessitating the need for a bond issue or at least one as large as requested. He has said that education is the responsibility of the parents, not the state. I agree in principle, but we're talking money here. Passing the bond issue places the debt squarely on the backs of property owners. What about all those families living in rental houses and apartments? What is their fair share and how is it to be collected? What are the odds of Phil supporting an increase in rent and a tax on those businesses which actually own or operate the properties? By the way, what happened to the money cut from public schools? How was it redistributed? Why are
Weathersby and his cronies(Phil?) opposed to the vote on the bond issue being presented as a referendum on the November Governor's race ballot? We know that bringing the issue to vote on its own will cost the taxpayers of Rankin County thousands of dollars. Could it be that asking homeowners to raise their own taxes on the November ballot might make voters think about who (Phil) helped put them in this situation to begin with? No, this doesn't pass the smell test. It stinks of local partisan politics. Do your homework. Take Phil's idea to heart. It IS the parents' responsibility to educate their children. Teach them the truth about the threat to public education in Mississippi and the threat to their future if these yahoos have their way. Think carefully about your vote. It matters.

Are we for raising taxes or eliminating taxes? The majority of Mississippians seem to be for eliminating taxes. Why, then ,would anyone expect sixty percent of us to vote to raise them? Maybe it's okay to talk out of both sides of our mouths at the same time. That's a talent usually reserved for professional politicians. I'll keep my pledge and my honor and vote no to raising taxes on property owners. Enough is enough.

Voting yes on the bond issue is giving Chuck Weathersby a blank check. He hasn't paid off the other two bond issues. Balance your budget, Chuck. Then we'll talk.

I haven't decided how Ill vote on the bond issue, but I've definitely decided not to vote for Phil Bryant because of what he's doing to our schools.

Voting yes on the bond issue is VOTING TO RAISE TAXES. Plain and simple. I belong to the Tea Party. I signed a pledge to oppose any plan to raise taxes by any amount for any reason. My Tea Party brothers and sisters and can be counted on to stand our ground against the issue. One of our goals is to privatize all schools and make quality education available to those who can afford it. Raising taxes is not the solution we support.

One of our goals is to privatize all schools and make quality education available to those who can afford it.

That will draw some comments.

I belong to the Tea Party, too. I agree with and support the statement of my brother (or sister) on our plan to privatize education. Get used to the idea. We're going to make it happen starting with vouchers and eventually (hopefully soon) with complete privatization. Education is not the responsibility of taxpayers. If you can't afford children stop having them. I don't have children but I have a vote and it will be cast against taxpayer money going to public schools.

Why should people who don't have kids in school pay for other people's kids? VOTE FOR PHIL BRYANT!

To Publius:
This could get interesting. Does Phil Bryant have kids? Where do they go to school? Public or private? If he is against state funding for public schools, exactly what is his plan for education if he is elected governor? Will he be voting (on this bond issue) for raising taxes on homeowners or depriving families of public schools? If you know him please ask him to respond. I think a lot of people need to know before November.

To Anonymous-
I have never met Phil Bryant. I am one of the majority of Mississippians who will decide a candidate's fitness to hold office by what that candidate wants me to hear. I offer an interesting quote from the August 17-23 issue of "The Jackson Free Press". I have found through fact checking that JFP is the most reliable source of information available to Mississippians. It's free, too!
From JFP; "One of the key issues that comes up in almost every conversation about the next governor's role in the educational system is funding the Mississippi Adeuqate Education Program. MAEP is a formula the state uses to figure out how much money each school district needs for its students to be successful... The Legislature passed the program in 1994... State law requires fully funding MAEP, but the Legislature has only met MAEP's budget requirements three times in the last decade.
The Parent's Campaign, an education advocacy group, says that MAEP is currently underfunded by $243 million, and the 2012 budget budget will underfund it by more than $230 million. More than 2,000 people working for public schools in Mississippi have lost their jobs over the past three years due to lack of funding. Since 2008, general-fund allotments for K-12 education have been cut by 10 percent - or $220 million - according to the Mississippi Economic Policy Center".
Phil Bryant is on record supporting these cuts so he can make you think he's against higher taxes. Makes a pretty good speech, but the bottom line is that his plan forces homeowners to either assume the burden of higher taxes (if you vote yes on the bond issue), or face the scorn of the "Moral High Grounders" if you don't support the children. Phil's office would not respond to JFP's requests for a statement regarding the subject. Seems to me Good 'Ole Phil has learned that a smart fish (one that doesn't get caught) is the one that knows when to keep his mouth shut. Watch that mouth, though, the next time he crawls out and speaks, and you'll see something really interesting. Good 'Ole Phil can speak out of both sides of it at the same time! His campaign slogan SHOULD BE: "I'M, ALL FOR LOWERING YOUR TAXES. IF YOU WANT SCHOOLS FOR THE CHILDREN, YOU'LL HAVE TO RAISE THEM YOURSELF". Get it? Clever 'ole boy, ain't he?
- Publius

Please vote No on this issue. Rankin county schools spend/waste more time and energy on their sport programs then they would ever want anyone to know. Whoever posted that 90% of the funds were to go to educational facilities obviously went to a public school that puts athletics over academics and can't do simple math. If you look at the budget for building classrooms at the schools that are not asking for athletic facilities and divide that by the number of classrooms, it averages about $284,000 PER CLASS!!!(which are basically cinderblock cubes). Use that number at the schools that are asking for athletic facilities along w/ classes and the percentages are insane. Brandon high is asking for over 150% more for sports facilities than classrooms. Florence High is asking for over 70% more of what they are asking for classrooms to "up grade"their sports facilities.If the schools would use the money they do receive wisely, we wouldn't need to raise taxes. For instance,half the staff members at Florence High School are coaches that teach only two classes a day which are the really hard classes like drivers ed., weight lifting, and health. If they would each teach 3 academic blocks a day, there would be room for 8 more legitimate teachers.Not only do the coaches teach less classes per day then other teachers, they get paid more not to teach as much. If what we want is publicly funded sports camps where diplomas are thrown at you on the way out the door(provided that you haven't missed more than 178 days of class and you somehow managed to pass w/ a 60 average) then Florence high, headed up by KIng Tony, is the place for you!. Keep in mind, most schools have adopted a policy where students can't be given a grade less than 50. So if a student does 10% of the required work added to the 50% they get for doing nothing, they will be well prepared graduates of the Rankin County school district! I'm so proud.

Wow that was a bunch of personal angst.

And your fallacious assumptions have been disproven previously; simply any response must be:

Vote yes. Thank you and have a nice day!

To KaptKangaroo-

Is that a carrot in your pocket or do you just get excited by the words "fallacious assumptions"?

Have a nice day, yourself. VOTE NO.

The answer to all of our problems is SCHOOL VOUCHERS. Let the public schools compete for every dollar. Then you will see smaller administration buildings (look at the tax payer funded cathedral on Hwy 80). Public school administration is a drain on all taxpayers. Let them roll out the old "It's for the Children" one more time. Fire 1/3 of administrators & I may think about a YES vote. Until a large chunk of public school administrators...AKA..MOOCHERS are in the un-employment line, my vote is NO!!!

No bond will pass in Rankin county until people get Weathersby out office. The board has got to get together and look at the recent bond vote as the handwriting on the wall so to speak. The board has GOT to get rid of the superintendent and his family - or a bond will NEVER pass. The people in Rankin county think Weathersby is a joke and will NEVER support a bond while he is in office. GET THE MESSAGE

There is a massive word of mouth campaign going on right now for a write in superintendent for Rankin Co. ANYONE!!!!!!
There were almost 800 write ins for superintendent of education in the PRIMARY - we need over 10,000 in November.
People who live in Rankin county need to write in a candidate in November for superintendent of education. This will send a message- if nothing else.

Teachers and children in the schools are going to be subjected to another 4 years of Weathersby in office.
This is unacceptable and people in Rankin County sent a strong message against him in the recent bond vote.
Rankin voters need to unite and write in a candidate to send a message of distrust to him and the board.
HE AND HIS FAMILY NEED TO GO - nothing productive in Rankin Co. education will happen until he is gone and with the bond failing it is only a matter of time until GOOD administrators and teachers start leaving the district in DROVES if he stays in charge.

The bond vote was a vote of no confidence toward him OVERWHELMINGLY countywide- wow - a huge vote of no confidence (the board needs to wake up and smell the coffee _ they need to get on board with the voting public and get this clown out of office His family and he are a joke of an administration.
RANKIN COUNTY _ please help! This bond vote was probably the best thing that ever happened if people will see it for what it was- a 20M contingency fund- as a license to steal - and certain board members not working with others - and only looking at what would benefit their part of the county instead of the county as a whole...THE BOARD MUST UNITE and vote as one as the voice of the people that they were elected to be!