First Friday and more this weekend in Biloxi

The Biloxi Main Street and downtown businesses will host the August edition of First Friday, tonight from 5 to 8 p.m. along Rue Magnolia and Water Street.

The affair will include live entertainment by Brandon Kenyon and Nevine Applewhite, and street tacos and cold brews at Makin’ Groceries Taco Pop-Up outside The Threaded Cork. Gallery 782 will feature artists Julie Boudreaux and Sue West and local shops will stay open late. A $50 gift card giveaway will also be part of the event.

Elsewhere this weekend: The Biloxi Shuckers continue their series with the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, and the 25th Annual Carl Legett Memorial Fishing Tournament takes place at the Point Cadet Pavilion. Over at the casinos, Ron White will perform at the Beau Rivage.
See the Biloxi Community Calendar
See a complete weekend listing

BTV now in Sparklight and Uverse homes

It’s official: Every morning at 6 o’clock, Rockin’ Ray Fournier and his rendition of his original tune “Down in Biloxi” launch BTV: Biloxi Television, the city’s new government channel, which is carried in Biloxi on Sparklight 56 on Uverse 99.

“We kick off the day at 6 a.m. (and every day of the month) with Biloxi’s Rockin’ Ray Fournier and his original tune, “Down in Biloxi,” and we close the day at 11:57 p.m. with an impassioned rendition of the National Anthem by our friend Ronny Broussard,” the city said in a Facebook post on the eve of the Thursday morning launch. “In between, we hope to provide you a lineup of educational, entertaining and enlightening programming.”

The new channel, which is expected to also be streaming this month, is a mix of current events, such as City Council meetings and other presentations, and a mix of local history and local flavor. This month, more than five hours of city council meetings are airing, including a host of budget meetings. They are shown in the morning, afternoon and evenings and are updated throughout the month.

The schedule also includes the monthly update on East Biloxi infrastructure work, Breakfast with the Mayor, the recent downtown development summit, and several programs highlighting the Biloxi Police and Fire departments.

BTV is also benefiting from a host of polished videos created years ago for the Biloxi Visitors Center. The vignettes spotlight the city’s origins, growth, and noteworthy residents through time, and like most BTV programming, show daily for the month. Said a Facebook post: “In a week or so, it will feel like groundhog day.”

Special programs also are in the works. Later this month, from Aug. 15-18, BTV remembers Hurricane Camille on the storm’s 50th anniversary and on Aug. 28-30 will unveil a host of lost and never-before-shown videos from the recovery of Hurricane Katrina. 
See the BTV schedule
Podcast: Inside story on BTV and more

See the latest council meetings this weekend

Most programming on BTV repeats daily throughout the month, but City Council meetings are updated after each meeting. The plan is to have at least three or four meetings airing on a given day. The lineup of council meetings will be updated next week after the council’s meetings.

Here’s the current council meeting lineup on BTV.

9 a.m.: City Council budget workshop from Monday, July 29. The one-hour, 48-minute meeting includes a review of departments of Administration, Executive and discretionary spending.

10:50 a.m.: City Council meeting from July 16.

12:26 p.m.: City Council meeting from July 23.

1:21 p.m.: City Council meeting from July 16

8:30 p.m.: City Council budget workshop from July 29.

10:20 p.m.: City Council meeting from July 16
Video: See archive of council meetings on YouTube

News & notes: Shuckers, sports registration, house fireKroc Center

Shuckers: The Biloxi Shuckers continue their homestand with the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. First pitch is at 6:30 p.m. and fireworks show follows the game, all at MGM Park. For more information, including promotions and tickets, visit the Biloxi Shuckers website by clicking here.

Football and cheer registration: The Biloxi Parks & Recreation Department holds registration for its football and cheerleading leagues beginning Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon at the Donal M. Snyder Sr. Community Center. To see information, such as fees and age groups, click here.

Backpack giveaway: Biloxi Ward 2 Councilman Felix Gines has organized a Back 2 School Backpack giveaway on Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. at John Henry Beck Park. 100 backpacks will be given away and educational information, games, inflatable water slide music and more will be part of the affair. To see the flyer, click here.

House fire: The Biloxi Fire Department responded to a house fire on Crawford Street Wednesday evening. The owner was not injured but a cat and four kittens sadly perished in the fire. To see a short video of the firefighters extinguishing the fire, posted on the Biloxi Fire Department and City of Biloxi Facebook pages, click here.

Kroc Center mourning: The three youths that drown at Dedeaux Park on Thursday worshiped at the Salvation Army Kroc Center Corps. According to Major Bradley Caldwell, the Salvation Army is attending to the families and will help with any funeral arrangements.