JJ posted yesterday the public comments that were submitted to the EPA on placing the Jackson sewer system under the control of Water Tsar Ted Henifin. Let's face it, not many people are going to read all 721 pages of public comments so the Kingfish is reading them for you. JJ is going to post a batch of notable comments every day as we work through them together. There are several that deserve their own posts and their own posts they shall receive. Kick off your shell cordovan shoes, fix a drink, light a cee-gar, and enjoy.
Public Comments Submitted to EPA
I support the court's order and the sewer system being managed by Ted Henifin and JXN Water. I have been dealing with a sewer issue since at least 2019. There is a broken sewer pipe from my backyard neighbors' house. It runs across the ditch and into the sewer line on my side.
They have flowing raw sewage leaving their house and going into the ditch. You can see the paper used and other debris in the water. The ditch is also a major concern. It does not drain and has stagnant water sitting in it. It only moves when there is rain. Banks on both sides have been washing away over the years due to flooding and erosion. We, along with other neighbor due to the amount of mosquitoes and gnats that stay year round. P. 8 This email is in support of Ted Henifin being appointed the manager of the city sewer system. In the time that Ted has been the manager of the city water system we have seen vast improvements in everything from billing to customer service to water pressure. It only makes sense to look at our city's water and sewer issues holistically and Ted has the expertise to manage both. P. 42 (KF Note: Most of the comments were similar to this one) I am writing to strongly urge you to move control and administration of the City of Jackson's sewer system to JXN Water and/or Ted Henefin. My family and I have lived in the City for over years, and have witnessed the downward spiral of most eve1y City service, including the sewer system. Citizens have become numb to raw sewage overflows, ungodly odors, and unsanitaiy conditions that could lead to illness. Simply put, the City lacks the organizational stmcture, hiring practices, employees, accountability system or competence to manage the sewer system. It's an embanassing circumstance that has developed over time due to the City's mismanagement ofresources. This must stop and the course must be reversed. It has been refreshing to have an experienced and competent manager running the City's water delive1y system. I am thankful for your control over this critical and necessaiy municipal function for the 150,000+ people that reside in Jackson. Please remove the sewer system completely from the control of the City of Jackson. Citizen's health and wellness depends on it. P.43 I support Ted Henefin’s court ordered appointment as manager of Jackson’s water and sewer systems. P. 44 Jane Alexander Thank you President Biden, EPA, Judge Wingate and God for sending us Ted Henifin. I was on the city council for years and am well aware of the systemic breakdown of everything in our city over the past quarter century. Today, we can't even keep or stop lights working, much less our libraries, roads, zoo, airport, schools (loss of 13,000 students in a few years), police department, firemen on strike, sewer system, water system, murder rate leads the nation, fiscal budget, teenage violent crime, swimming pools....well literally everything the city is in charg eof doesn't work. Thank God federal law dictates clean water and sewers (I didn't mention the millions of gallons of raw sewage dumped straight into the Pearl River from the city sewers). Accordingly, the federal government has stepped in, and the predictable cadre of "Johnny Come Lately" complainers and "organizations" (THAT is a stretch) are predictably and loudly complaining. This is so apparent. They do not care that Mr. Henifin is doing major miracles.....they are ridiculously upset because THEY and our "Mayor" cannot control the process and the contracts. They simply and selfishly want the money. Shame on them and shame on the mayor. Please do not change this process and Mr. Henifin...the only thing in this entire city that is good, but happens to be a white guy that isn't from here, and the complainers don't have him in their fold. P. 49 Ben Allen I support the appointment of Edward "Ted" Henifin as Interim Third-Party Manager of the City of Jackson Sewer System, under the te1ms set fo1th in the Stipulated Order entered on July 31, 2023 in The United States of America v. The City of Jackson, Mississ;ppi (3:12-cv- 00790; U.S. District Comt, S.D. Mississippi). P. 81 Samuel Begley I strongly support the court’s order and the management of the sewer system by Ted Henifin and JxnWater. Don Cannada p. 135In all employment situations, additional work and/or a promotion is only awarded when a person has shown an exceptional aptitude for the current and potential job. At present, Ted Henefin has not displayed any exceptional ability when it comes to Jackson’s water issue. If anything, he has shown that he is not able to provide sufficient updates to the public or visible improvements.Only after the public comment meetings, did I myself see Jackson Water trucks out working to fix issues with the water and/or sewer. However, these trucks were only seen in a majority white affluent area, and not in the South Jackson areas in most need of improvements and water. For these reasons, I believe Ted Henefin should not be granted authority over the Jackson sewer system. I welcome the opportunity to speak further on this issue and can be reached by email or phone. J. Carter p. 142
Ted Henifin is doing a great job. He should manage sewer too. Wyatt Emmeric p. 203
Kingfish note: Stay tuned for more tomorrow. Peace!
18 comments:
I thought luDUMBa and rakia were fir the people? Looks like they’re on their own island of unreality and people are telling Chokwe you’re unqualified as mayor just as you’re unqualified as a lawyer. Don’t let the door hit your delusional ass on the way out!!!
LMAO. I wonder if p. 169 comment is from Socrates Garret.
Mayor of the City of Jackson let’s allow someone else to fix the problems. It ain’t always about black, white, who gets contracts, who fixes what. We need a safe and functioning city!
For the past years as you are Mayor almost everything went down the hill. I was gonna say drain, but that ain’t working!
Bumble will still win in 2025. Jackson voters are really that dumb.
I hope we start with Harvey Johnson.
Ben Allen's comment are epic. Damn. Nail on head.
DBE contractors are the reason many things fail. Paying more for less and 95% of the time they turn around and hire non DBE contractors to do the work and just siphon their cut off the top. DBE is a redistribution of wealth, welfare, and BS all rolled into one.
Henefin is doing a great job and the city is fortunate to have him. However, he's not a miracle worker. He is simply a smart and capable leader who has a sh*t pile of free money to spend. He's done an excellent job and deserves credit. But there are plenty of capable water/sewer folks (including many in Mississippi) who could have performed just as well. Henefin needed, and received, what any capable leader needed. He needing funding, and he needed somebody to keep Lumumba and the other idiots in Jackson government away from him and the money while he performed his duties. He's doing a good job.
It's sad that the Jackson leaders let it get to this point. The incompetence from the mayor and council over the last 30 years is astounding.
Bumble will still win in 2025.
Nope.
Just a bunch of raw boo boo.
The Feds will bail Jackson out of Chok's new world order.
Or lack thereof.
I read the comments appended in this thread. I won't waste my time reading those that might follow. I see no point.
PS: If it makes the Fish feel better, I did follow his advice and mixed a drink. A Thursday morning Bloody Mary. Peace, indeed.
Irony = The Lumumbas fighting to be in charge of sh!t
Good for you 5:13. As the old saying goes, you can't drink all day unless you start early.
"However, these trucks were only seen in a majority white affluent area, and not in the South Jackson areas in most need of improvements and water."
Pretty sure Ted has plans to attack all problematic areas but that takes funding. Besides, we're the ones paying our bills. We're also the largest tax base this city has. Of course, if things keep going the way they have, we'll all eventually move away and take our money with us. Then you'll need to yell a bit louder when you call us racists. It'll be harder for us to hear you.
I'm eagerly awaiting volume 2 of the people speak, and Lumumba cries.
Where was the chorus of Lumumba shills during the months long lead up to the state-then-federal takeover? I don’t recall any chants about the “sacred right of clean water” or any protests about the mayor’s total nonchalance about the impending collapse at O.B. Curtis. I’m firmly in the contract-steering camp and, as such, am starting to think some folks perhaps over-leveraged their greedy selves in advance of the big bailout. Surely there is a civic-minded person with a scruple or two who could run for mayor.
"However, these trucks were only seen in a majority white affluent area, and not in the South Jackson areas in most need of improvements and water."
This was proven false. JXN Water keeps records of what/when/etc.
Good grief!
Jackson hasn't had any political heavy hitters to bring the money here for a long time. God knows, Jimmy Fowler was great at getting things done for this city! More than a few of your tax dollars and federal money is going to Hattiesburg now.
Fowler understood that the entire State Constitution was written to keep a rural/small town grip on the State for then, the Delta planters. But, his business acumen and willingness to accept the reality of the " is", kept our heads above water.
What is it about taking in more federal dollars than we pay in taxes that YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND? What is it about Jackson's sale tax share that you don't understand? Jackson generates the highest sales tax for the State, but even the 1% increase we are supposed to get goes to a STATE appointed Commission!
The ISSUE is where that money goes and it's not the money to the families dependent on welfare but to the " middle men" aka politicians and their supporters that take their "cut" or "contract win" first.
It's federal money that gave us the best 3 hospitals in the State. It's the feds who solved the water crisis! It's federal dollars that fix our roads and bridges and keep even mom and pop businesses alive.
That is WHY I supported Heflin. Without him, any support for Jackson would be in the hands of our corrupt state politicians but you are imaging things if you think Jackson's politicians are the clever crooks in this! A few of them are awarded the "spoils" from the GOP but look for who is living " higher on the hog" these days!
The problems in Jackson have been incompetence and that SO includes the City Council as Melvin Priester tried very politely to explain. It's the refusal to learn how something should and can be done that works!
But you have to actually read the facts and do math!
Why is this so hard?
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