Jackson Free Press

Jackson business owners and concerned citizens are channeling their inner Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins to give the Northside Drive exit on Interstate 55 a much-needed facelift.

If it happens, it'll be thanks to the fund-raising work of neighborhood organization LeFleur's East and an agreement between the Hinds County Board of Supervisors and the Mississippi Department of Transportation. The Hinds County board entered into an "Adopt An Interchange" agreement with the Mississippi Department of Transportation in December.

Their target is an overgrown, under-kept exit made of stone, ripe for a pressure washing and some landscaping.

LeFleur's East started with a fund-raising goal of $150,000 to plant trees and shrubs along the exit, and they got a big endorsement from well-known local entrepreneur Jeff Good.

Good's company, Mangia Bene, manages businesses on both sides of the Northside Drive exchange, Bravo! Italian Restaurant on the east side and Broad Street Bakery on the west. His donation of $2,000 helped push the total donations to more than $50,000, a third of the way to the total the group needs to start work on the improvements.

To get involved, call Kelly Headley at 601-720-8343 or email [email protected].

It is unclear when the improvements are expected to begin and who will be contracted to do the work. Neither Headley or LeFleur's East spokesman Jim Wilkerson return phone calls before press time.

Armory in Limbo After Fire

Experts now believe that sparks from welders ignited the fire that engulfed the Hinds County Armory and destroyed the roof of the 93-year-old building. The structure is the longest-standing armory in Mississippi, and it will add an interesting chapter to its rich history following a July 2 fire that left it without a roof.

Last year, the state put up $600,000 to put a new roof on the building as part of a bigger plan to give the fairgrounds a makeover. That construction was ongoing when the fire started.

"It's just a hull of a building right now with no roof," Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Cindy Hyde-Smith, whose department oversees maintenance of the fairgrounds, told the Mississippi Business Journal. "On the south end, there was a partial roof, and all of that was destroyed."

Officials say they will assess the damage and try to determine when construction can continue in the coming weeks.

The armory was named a Mississippi Landmark in 1986, and placed on the National Register of Historic Places on Dec. 1, 2001.

True South Set to Tee Off Thursday

The Sanderson Farms Championship, formerly known as the True South Classic, will take place on the links of Annandale Golf Course in Madison beginning Thursday morning, July 18, through Sunday afternoon.

Berths in a pair of pro-am tournaments set for Monday, July 15, and Wednesday have sold out, and the guest list shows why. On Monday, Southern Miss football greats Reggie Collier and Ray Guy, Mississippi State head football coach Dan Mullen and Southern Miss head football coach Todd Monken were on hand to sign autographs and play a round.

The second celebrity pro-am was set for Wednesday morning, July 17, and features New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton, Ole Miss head football coach Hugh Freeze and former Southern Miss and Denver Broncos running back Sammy Winder. Although previously set to attend, Mississippi football legend Archie Manning and Saints general manager Mickey Loomis sent regrets after pulling out of the event.

The tournament has raised more than $7.5 million for statewide charities since its inception in 1968. This year, the charity of choice is the heart center at Blair E. Batson Children's Hospital.

St. Dom's Opens New Building

St. Dominic Hospital, at Interstate 55 and Lakeland Drive, opened a Behavioral Health Services building to house its acute-care psychiatric hospital last week.

The 77-bed, two-story facility consists of 56,500 square feet on the first floor and 21,500 square feet on the second floor. It adds 77 beds to the hospital's capacity, bringing St. Dominic's total to approximately 535 beds.

"Instead of renovating the existing Behavioral Health Services building, which was in need of substantial repairs, St. Dominic's completely razed the building and reconstructed it in phases in the same location," hospital spokeswoman Margaret Mays said.