Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann issued the following press release:
Mississippi Acquires 492 Acres of Cat Island in BP Deal
Gulfport, Miss.—Ownership of much of Cat Island, the westernmost of the Mississippi Gulf Coast’s four barrier
islands, is returned to Mississippi today.
Secretary
of State Delbert Hosemann, in his role as State Land Commissioner,
accepted the deed to 492 acres known as the “East Beach” and “Middle
Spit” of Cat Island from BP Exploration & Production,
Inc. (“BP”). BP acquired the acreage, which is valued at approximately
$13.7 Million, from the Boddie family in 2011.
The
full cost of the transfer of the land to the State is being paid by the
federal Mississippi Coastal Improvements Program. The program is
administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Congress created the Coastal Improvements Program after the devastation
of Hurricane Katrina to restore the Mississippi Gulf Coast and increase
its resilience to future storms. No State funds were expended to
purchase this land.
“After
two centuries, Mississippi is getting its island back,” Secretary
Hosemann said. “Cat Island is a special treasure because of its natural
beauty and the protection it offers the Mississippi
Gulf Coast. By finalizing this acquisition, we are ensuring your
grandchildren’s grandchildren will be able to enjoy this natural
treasure in perpetuity.”
Cat
Island is a well-known recreation site used mainly for low-impact
activities such as swimming, sunbathing, camping, hiking, fishing, and
safe mooring. The island is, for the most part,
untouched by modernity with pine/oak maritime forest, estuarine marsh,
sand dunes, and beaches.
Since
the French discovered the land in the late 1600s, there have been only a
few owners of property on Cat Island. These include the National Park
Service, BP, the Cuevas family, the Boddie
family, and some individual landowners all dating back to the original
Spanish land grant in the late 1700s.
“The
acquisition of Cat Island’s eastern shore is another example of
Mississippi’s commitment to preserving and restoring our most scenic and
sensitive habitats. This new acreage will be added
to the existing Cat Island Coastal Preserve already under the
management of our agency,” said Jamie Miller, Executive Director of the
Department of Marine Resources.
The
Department of Marine Resources (“DMR”), a State agency created to
protect and conserve marine interests, will oversee the day-to-day
maintenance of the Cat Island property.
Since
2012, and including the acreage acquired from BP today, the State has
expanded its ownership of the island to more than 718 acres.
In
May 2016, the State and National Park Service executed a preliminary
exchange agreement agreeing to swap “Goose Point,” 28.5 acres on the
southernmost tip of the island, for land of equivalent
value immediately adjacent to Park Service property. The exchange was
made possible by Senate Bill 2438, which was sponsored by State Senator
Sean Tindell (R-Harrison) and passed in the 2015 Legislative Session.
The House version of the bill was sponsored
by State Representative Casey Eure (R-Harrison).
With
funding from a settlement agreement with Mitsui-subsidiary MOEX, funds
from unused bond proceeds (Senate Bill 2700, sponsored by State Senator
Brice Wiggins (R-Jackson County)), and a Tidelands
appropriation approved by the State Legislature, Mississippi acquired
approximately 200 acres in the middle of Cat Island in 2013 from the
Boddie family. The Boddies retain ownership of about 72 acres of
property in the middle of the island.
On
November 17, 2016, Secretary Hosemann and the Department of the Army
entered into a Memorandum of Agreement for Construction of the
Mississippi Coastal Improvements Barrier Island Restoration
Plan, Cat Island Restoration.
Under
the Memorandum, the U.S. Corps of Engineers plans to renourish the
eastern beach of Cat Island with 2 million (2,000,000) cubic yards of
dredged sand. The renourished area will be approximately
250 feet wide and will be between five to seven feet in height, sloping
toward the Gulf. Renourishment will restore the eastern side of the
island to its pre-1998 condition and add approximately 40 acres to Goose
Point which previously eroded below sea level.
Completion of the project is expected in 2017.
For
more information about Mississippi’s coastal resources, or for
information about recreation and other opportunities on Cat Island other
State-owned coastal property, visit
DMR’s website.
3 comments:
Ok. I am so very surprised, as a student of history, that there hasn't been more... Well, just more comments regarding this transfer of land. Everyone should be aware that the Cat Island holding is connected to the Tougaloo Plantation, now Tougaloo College, then Boddie Plantation. Where are the 40 acre and a mule people??
Connected to the plsntstion? Owned by the same people/family but don't think it was ever connected -physically or any other way.
Viva España!
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