Jackson Jambalaya

I really like Brandon and lived there for several years. When Western Auto was there they had a great opportunity to develop it into a charming town. It could have been a great place to live but unfortunately, as Madison and Flowood boomed, Brandon stagnated and didn't do anything. Brandon could have developed the beautiful square into something like what Oxford has, but the total lack of leadership crippled any development. Too many of the city leaders wanted Brandon to stay a backwater and when they DID try to delvep the area they thought RC racetracks and curb stores were the answer. Instead of developing major retail and speciality shopping, they catered to the WalMart crowd and Mexican restaurants.

Sorry, but churches and little league ball fields do not bring in much of a tax base.

Because of this, Brando is and will always be Hickville.

I do like to see these old articles though!

Brandon was a great town to grow up in. Stores like Busicks, Granthams Cleaners, Thompson Furniture, Overby Drug Store and Whites Hardware Store. Many wonderful families like the Ponders, Morrows, McLaurins, Busicks, Harrels, Tigretts, Over
bys, McIntyres, Howards, Bentons and many others.

I've lived in Brandon 21 years. Live in true old Brandon. It's not Hickville, like Mr. sour grapes indicates. The article is still true. It has a small town environment, with convenience of Jackson and surrounding. Retail is temporary. The only good parts of Jackson are the areas built around rooftops, not retail. Ask south Jackson, Ridgeland. Flowood will find that out in a few years. Brandon is built on rooftops with a quality of life built around a family. I'll take churches and ball fields over new Costco and bankrupt retail developments any time. Stay in Flowood and Madison. I don't mind driving there to shop, and coming home to a small town to live.

10:43 has only half the story. Downtown Brandon has never developed worth a $h!+ because the vast majority of Downtown Brandon is effin 16th section land. You show me real property that a private citizen can never own outright and I'll show you real property that is never adequately resourced, developed or improved. The result is effin metal qwonset huts, dilapidated 2 story crap buildings and cheap ass retail garbage. And despite all of the negatives, there is a bit of a renaissance going on in Downtown Brandon with renovation of dilapidated structures happening as I type. For Brandon, it's a surprising transformation. But until Downtown Brandon successfully overcomes the impediment of school board ownership of 95% of its downtown, any success is short-lived.

"I don't mind driving there to shop, and coming home to a small town to live."

You must be one of the few who can figure out how to 'come home' to Brandon without an aggravating, nauseating forty minute drive on the interstate.

I live north of County Line Road and am trying real hard to remember the last I drove to Brandon for anything. My wife goes to a beautician there and I bought steel toe motorcycle boots at Busicks in Brandon in 2002, fifteen years ago.

Brandon seems to me to be Pearl-Light, just with fewer billboards and mobile home sales.

"The only good parts of Jackson are the areas built around rooftops, not retail."

Yeah, that's worked well for west Jackson! Ha.

"Downtown Brandon has never developed worth a $h!+ because the vast majority of Downtown Brandon is effin 16th section land."

I never knew that. If true, its interesting. What town development experts would center their plans around 16th section land knowing the impediments to private sector acquisition?

I think the above comments miss the biggest issue. Downtown Brandon is awful for the same reason all of Rankin county that isn't tucked away on cul de sacs is awful. The flippin traffic. The whole town smells like car exhaust, and I would hazard that you have to wipe the road grime off the facades of all those buildings every week or so. And lord help you if try to walk anywhere. Sidewalks are rare, crosswalks even rarer. Oh and bike lanes? Psssh, Rankin don't go in for that hippie crap. Rankin county just has way too much through traffic on its residential and light commercial streets. It's small town infrastructure with big city volumes. Gah, those beautiful homes on College St; they are ruined by that constant thrum of traffic. This is all made 1,000 times worse by the Rankin demographic's taste for trucks with custom exhaust pipes that sounds like an earthquake from a mile away. With all that said, I live in Rankin. It beats Jackson. But without some dramatic changes, it'll never be a really nice place to live.

"The State of Mississippi owns over 640,000 acres of trust land known as "16th Section Land." Trustees manage land held in trust -- and 108 Mississippi public school districts serve as trustees for 16th Section Land, with the Mississippi Secretary of State serving as the supervising trustee. The allocation of 16th section property dates back to the Land Ordinance of 1785, which set aside section number 16 in each township for the use and benefit of public schools.

The 108 trustee school districts raise public education funds by leasing 16th Section Land, which is partitioned and classified for different uses. Classifications include agricultural, forestry, farming, hunting and fishing, recreational, residential, industrial and mining. The local school districts advertise the land through notices and newspapers -- and the highest bidder wins the lease. When renewing a lease, the land is appraised at fair market rental value. The lessee is responsible for paying the taxes as if the lessee owned the property."

Link:

http://legalbeagle.com/7383513-section-16-land-mississippi.html

So not only do you have to pay the highest bid, you also have to pay the property taxes, and all other applicable taxes if you're a property owner or want to develop.
That cost gets put onto prospective tenants.

It makes no financial sense for anyone to come in and re/develop property because the overhead is so high.

That area along west government street is marketable because of the traffic flow and access to the interstate with roads leading to relatively new residential development. The architecture could easily rendered to make it fit in with the older historic buildings. Rather than reformulating these laws or making any exceptions for normalization to collect property taxes, sales taxes, and quarterly taxes to the state that would go into a general fund, they'd rather keep it this way.

The result is shanti town. This is one of the many "anti-growth" things about MS in general and affects more than just Brandon.

The law needs to be reformed statewide. You can't expect capitalism to thrive when you're still hanging on to socialism. Brandon and others have a Cuba problem.

Actually, the 16th Section in question has it's west boundary at about the Autozone on Highway 80 at Marquette Rd. and it's east boundary about 400 feet west of the Confederate Statue in Downtown. But nice try anyways.

"You show me real property that a private citizen can never own outright and I'll show you real property that is never adequately resourced, developed or improved."

I don't suppose you are familiar with the acronym "PRVWSD" and how it applies to pretty much every bit of development around the Ross Barnett Reservoir?

Whereas 16th section land can be sold for industrial development at present day in Mississippi as long as the school district purchases replacement land of like acreage and value;
Whereas 16th section land should be sourced as local municipalities see fit to enhance their rational self interests and local economy;
Whereas a bill should be authored to liberate municipalities to sell 16th section land for commercial and residential development as well as industrial development;
Whereas if the above proposed provision in current law regarding 16th section land is not allowed by certain powers, the inaction is discriminatory in nature as it chooses winners and losers in the private sector with appropriations of said land.

Signed,
Hail Mary*

*it's worth a shot

38047, The good Brandon.

It's time Brandon set a proper example by rallying around the Confederate statue that remains front and center. You drive around it headed east or west. You walk straight into it if you're not careful. You can see it from Pelahatchie and Pearl on a clear day.

The statue IS Brandon. And if the citizens of the village are careful and plan properly, it could be the only one left standing in a few years, making Brandon a virtual tourist mecca.

I have no idea if the statue sits on sixteenth section land, but, it probably does. That should not matter until the town council and school board become all black. but, that should be a while off.

11:28, you need to pay careful attention to words. The sentence which raised your objection, says, partially, "..adequately resourced, developed or improved".

Your example of PRVWSD does not compute. While perhaps sixty years ago it was adequately headed toward development, it has failed miserably in development over the past twenty years and is rarely if ever improved.

Talk to people who live in the Twin Harbor area east of Madison on PRV district land. They constantly complain about poor service from the District. Infrastructure is abysmal all around the Rez, nothing is ever improved and management operates in a total vacuum. Is this your idea of 'adequate'?

Yeah, you are correct. There isn't jack that is developed in the PRVWSD leasehold land that is worth having. Lost Rabbit, Roses Bluff, Bridgepointe just to name a few. Yep, not seeing a damn thing "adequate" about any of it. Here's a link to the maps, perhaps you might find more "inadequate" areas. In the meantime, I am told that next months edition of "Southern Living Magazine" will have a Brandon MS immigration application form on the inside back cover. Fill it out (please don't use a crayon) and we will review your application. Good Luck!

http://www.therez.ms.gov/Pages/Real-Estate.aspx

Brandon's "First Lady" was way more hip than the rest of the State back in '64 making movies with the likes of Nancy Sinatra, while we know what was going on in Jackson in '64----dogs and fire hoses.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5rf2atp75I

11:14 - Sure there are several developments for the ultra-wealthy. But there are also areas that are neglected as if they are slums. I don't think anybody claimed there are not some nice areas around the reservoir.

All of the boat ramps are shit-holes, blown out, dangerous piers....with the exception of the large ones that cater to large boat traffic. It is by design that the place operates on a caste system.

Wish I could have read the rest about the Civil War story.

Wow! Never knew I lived in such a backward dismal place. I have a nice home in a great area. I'm close to good restaurants, shopping, and outdoor recreation. Those with children have one of the best public school systems in the state or if they choose private schools and excellent facilities for youth baseball and soccer. Property taxes are very reasonable. Traffic congestion has grown but is not a real problem. Having lived in some of the more popular and affluent areas of the country I enjoy what Brandon offers. It really depends on what stage you are in life and what you are looking for. Don't forget 20 and 55 can take you just about anywhere you want go. Bye.

Kangaroo jumps in to state unrelated nonsense.

Seems like the Madison folks who pay too much for everything are showing their hidden remorse in trying to defend their decision to not live in Rankin county. It's not perfect, but we know the truth about Madison county too. A very small area with high debt around part of Ridgeland and Madison, remainder is just like unincorporated part of Rankin, if not worse. There's one sure way to get a Madisonite sturred up. Tell them Madison isn't the best in the world and watch their blood pressure shoot up.

Nope. I actually read the article.