Jackson Jambalaya

Can't say I blame the guy. He's been "Interim Director" longer than anyone else has been the actual Director of recent.

All the responsibility, quarter of the pay.

Good luck, Mr. Lee! Thank you for your service!

At least we have plenty of lawyers

Do nothing programs need no leadership. Engineering departments with no projects do not need engineers. He will be happier elsewhere and folks deserve to be happy. Even engineers only have a certain number of productive years. Might as well be happy somewhere else.

Maybe the Mayor's sister can take the job. She seems to want to engineer everything anyway.

They need to quickly appoint a committee of community leaders to study the need. Might need to reserve a flight to California or Paris to get another perspective.

Are there any other cities of similar size to Jackson in the southeastern US that are in as bad of shape as Jackson? I'm talking from all aspects (crime, infrastructure, piss poor leadership, crumbling tax base, low performing public schools, garbage/water fiasco, etc., etc.). Surely, there are other southern cities experiencing the same problems on the same scale as Jackson.

Good luck to a fine man who can make more and enrich his future and that of his family, elsewhere.

Nothing else to say.

@2:59 - While some of your comments have relevance (i.e. he will be happier elsewhere), but your comment that implies there are "no projects" makes no sense or has any relevance. Don't know what rock you are living under, but there are several projects underway and in the design stage that are in the purview of the city's public works department. Problem may be that there are too many such projects for one engineer to deal with, and Mr. Lee decided he could make more money with less work in another city.

Why does Jackson need an engineer on its payroll?

Richards Engineering Co

They will NEVER get another sucker to do that job for $60k per yr.

hopefully he's moving onto something that pays better, has less responsiblity, more free time, or has an administration that supports him. probably all 4.

Like rats fleeing a sinking ship...

@3:01. Baton Rouge immediately comes to mind. All the other major southern cities such as Montgomery, Little Rock, and the four in Tennessee seem to be doing just fine.

The sad reality that Jacksonians need to recognize is that a once thriving city has become a "shit hole" due to incompetence in city hall, as well as in the departments. It just took Mr. Lee longer to recognize.

@3:30 PM Classic! And probably not far from the truth... As someone who has worked off and on with Robert (No "E.") Lee, he was a responsive professional - in complete contrast with the COJ. My guess is that he was perpetually micro-managed and watched Public Works crumble. No self-respecting PE could stand that much incompetence.

I’d be curious to see where he will go. He’s been trying to get out of CoJ since Lumumba Sr was in office.

Hard to feel sorry for his predicament, though. It’s no secret in the industry that he has made a lot of enemies with the major employer for engineers in the area, which is how you get stuck in a dead end job when all your other colleagues are jumping from the sinking ship.

HAHA! This is truly unbelievable. The destruction of Jackson HAS to be by design. Because I'm evidently not smart enough to figure out their end-game of "ruling over" a hollowed-out shell of a city, I have to ask if this administration couldn't do this bad of a job, unless it was intentional.

Think about it: there's a new "OMG" story every. single. week. (if not more frequently)

To ask a non-rhetorical question: Is there any possible way Jackson can recover from these depths? I say no. My hometown is done.

Chowke has blamed this on white flight, open carry, and gun shows. Right?

I wouldn’t work for $60k a year performing that job either. jackson you better dig deep and find a good replacement and don’t do the DEI shit or you will d i e. Just a suggestion. Last one out….TURN OUT THE LIGHTS.

Couldn't happen to a better city

3:29. Ridiculous comment!!! But if they privatize the entire public works department then maybe. But who’s going to oversee those functions? Doubt you could handle it!

6:27 - I would paraphrase your comment by adding, "Couldn't happen to a better city administration."

"Are there any other cities of similar size to Jackson in the southeastern US that are in as bad of shape as Jackson? I'm talking from all aspects (crime, infrastructure, piss poor leadership, crumbling tax base, low performing public schools, garbage/water fiasco, etc., etc.)."

Jackson is still the bold new city. Mayor hustles out of the room like a scared rat to avoid the Pledge of Allegiance, and then turns around and accepts close to a billion dollars to bail his ass out, just a chukin' and jivin' the whole time. Then tax-dodger sis starts her po' folks campaign.

Jackson. Driven into the ground by years and years of hustlers. The worst of all possible results.

@ "Why does Jackson need an engineer on its payroll?"

Because literally all of the city infrastructure requires engineering. Yes, you can outsource it, but someone at the city should understand what's going on, and that requires an engineer or ten.

Mr. Lee is headed to Gulfport.

Matthew 10:14

The demise of Jackson is a direct result of decades old racism. White Jacksonian moved to Madison, etc. so their kids could go to school with other white people. The tax base and the City declined as a result. Nothing will change until the tax base is restored. You reap what you sow folks.

There are no jobs here for engineers. Trust me.

No worries as wannabe engineer Socrates Garrett will get a no-bid contract to take over all engineering duties. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge. Right?

@8:18 are you saying only white people are capable of creating a tax base?

Sounds racist to me....

@5:16 said it best Robert was not well liked within the Engineering community. The bigger issue is this administration total lack of leadership and fiscal accountability. Foote noted this is an administration issue due to incompetence and being incoherent to solving problems without taking on the victim role. Currently this administration has no finance, public works, and planning director going into a 2025 election year. Now they will not have a licensed professional engineer on City payroll. Black, white, democrat or republican can someone take this failed situation and turn it around? The City of Jackson residents and businesses cannot withstand another 4 years of Lumumba! His resume speaks for itself!

Is Jerriot Smash available for an encore?

If Jackson residents want competent day-to-day leadership at city hall, I suggest that we consider converting to the City Manager form of government. Under this form of government, we would have a professional running the city operations with only limited political interference coming from the mayor and city council.

Someone above reported Mr. Lee is taking a similar job on the coast. I will bet he was packing his bags before he hung up the phone call offering him that coast job.

Good luck, Mr. Lee. Thanks for staying as long as you did. Sorry for all the crap you had to deal with while you worked here.

What does the city of Jackson need with an engineer? They are not going to fix the streets, build anything, or even repair what they have.