Miss. town continues post-Katrina rebound

The aspirations of Moss Point, Miss., reflect in many ways what Charlottesville has become. Officials in both places have similar plans for walkable downtowns and desire to maintain a strong nonprofit community and forge partnerships between government and those outside of it.

The small Gulf Coast city of about 17,000, ravaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, is further east of its better-known neighbors such as Gulfport and Biloxi. But on the third anniversary of the most devastating storm in U.S. history — and nearly 18 months after Moss Point officials and community leaders came here for ideas on how to transform the city — many in Charlottesville still have an eye on the riverfront town.

“They know the limits of their community but they also know the aspirations of their community,” said former Charlottesville Mayor Maurice Cox, who has traveled to Moss Point eight times since the hurricane struck.

At that time, nearly 1,500 Moss Point residents had yet to move back into their homes, and the city was trying to establish a funding base to rebuild flooded neighborhoods. Charlottesville Public Works Director Judith Mueller, who visited the city one year after the storm, said the city was reeling from trying to fix its problems with several bureaucratic obstacles in the way.

“I don’t think anyone would have ever envisioned what happened to them,” she said.

Now, glimpses of pre-hurricane normality are apparent: The city’s Piggly Wiggly grocery store is back, a new clothing department store has established itself and the number of families in temporary housing is down to about 200. Moss Point and Charlottesville leaders concur that the trip here was beneficial in formulating strategic plans about the Mississippi city’s future.

“One of the hardest things, when you’re in the eye of the storm, is to gain some perspective and reflection,” Cox said.

He added, “Long before you do any bricks and mortar, helping them to do this transformative planning was really the work we had engaged in since Katrina.”

Charlottesville spokesman Ric Barrick said Moss Point’s situation also allows officials here to learn how to respond if a disaster strikes.

“Part of this effort is not only for them but also for us,” Barrick said.

Moss Point’s redevelopment will center on its downtown and waterfront, and officials are hopeful that it will stimulate economic activity in other parts of the city. But examining the overall redevelopment progress of Moss Point is like looking at two sides of the same coin.

“It’s sort of a glass half-empty, half-full perspective,” said Moss Point Mayor Xavier Bishop. “There has been progress in planning, there’s been progress in procuring funding for projects, and even identifying the priority. The half-empty scenario is few of the projects have gotten off the ground.”

Bishop said though the number of people in temporary housing has been reduced — and “Mississippi cottages” that blend in with the region’s architecture have replaced many of the trailers — it remains unclear whether those units will become a part of the city’s existing housing stock. If they don’t, families will be required to move by March.

“Now we’ve gotta decide, what do we do with the cottages?” asked Aneice Liddell, the at-large member of Moss Point’s Board of Alderman.

The city has procured $15 million toward constructing a new city hall, which is still in a trailer, as well as a central fire station, and starting riverfront work. Additionally, it has received more than $10 million in grants and taken out between $5 million and $10 million in low-interest loans.

But challenges still exist. Bishop said the money has to be used fairly quickly, and city officials need to expeditiously decide how to move forward. Right now officials are working with contractors and architects.

“While roughly a third of the funds have become available for the first phase of the project, we are still plodding through the minutia of details,” he said. “It’s been a slow process.”

He added that the city must obtain new funding sources, as federal funding will eventually dry up.

“The spigot is slowly being turned off,” Bishop said.

Liddell said she thinks the city government needs to increase its efficiency to move its many projects along, especially as so many of them are simultaneously scheduled.

“We have not moved in a timely manner,” she said.

Leah Whitmer, spokeswoman for Habitat for Humanity of the Mississippi Gulf Coast, said difficulty in navigating government processes often stalls recovery efforts. In the past month, Habitat has started to construct its first two homes in Moss Point and has rehabilitated another. Other towns, Whitmer said, have been able to get many more homes because their plans are set. One of them is neighboring Pascagoula, where Habitat has constructed 20 houses.

“We’re eager to get working there,” said Whitmer, referring to Moss Point.

Bishop agreed that project management is one of the biggest issues the city has had to overcome.

“The coordination effort is just overwhelming,” he said.

But the visit to Charlottesville and ongoing planning efforts are slowly moving Moss Point in its desired direction — toward a riverfront park, increased environmental sustainability and a revitalized downtown, booming with pedestrian activity from prosperous small businesses.

“We are on the right track with our vision,” Bishop said.