Mayor A.J. Holloway has called a meeting of the City Council for Thursday at 1:30 p.m. to receive a preview of the Reviving the Renaissance report and a detailed presentation about rebuilding east Biloxi.
Retired Air Force Gen. Clark Griffith, who Holloway appointed in February to head the city’s Reviving the Renaissance initiative, will provide a brief presentation of the overall RTR report, and Gordon Brigham of the national community development initiative Living Cities will give a detailed report about the east Biloxi component of the report.
The meeting, which takes place at City Hall, is open to the public.
“As everyone knows, over the past few months we’ve had more than 200 Biloxi residents from across this city discussing the key elements needed for us to once again enjoy a great quality of life and a promising future. In short, what is needed to ‘Revive the Renaissance,’” Holloway told council members Tuesday afternoon.
“The Reviving the Renaissance committee, which you and I helped appoint, looked at all of the issues throughout our city – affordable housing, public education, pubic safety, transportation, and historic preservation, to name a few.
“And at the same time we had a parallel initiative that focused particularly on those issues in east Biloxi. That’s what you’re going to see Thursday during a meeting at 1:30: a preview from Clark Griffith, and a detailed presentation from Living Cities on east Biloxi.”
Living Cities, a 15-year-old partnership of philanthropic, corporate, and government investors, has committed more than $500 million in national funding for inner city rejuvenation. The mayor authorized the group to draft a plan for east Biloxi after a post-storm meeting with representatives of Living Cities and the Knight Foundation, which helps fund projects in communities where Knight Ridder newspapers are located. The Living Cities report is being funded by the Knight Foundation and local businesses.
In his remarks to the council Tuesday, Holloway said: “Why show you east Biloxi first? Because east Biloxi is what many believe is our biggest challenge, and may provide a guide for how we may proceed throughout the city. I hope all of you can attend Thursday at 1:30 to hear Clark’s preview and the detailed Living Cities report.”
More info online
East Biloxi: Advance copies of the Living Cities report were delivered to the City Council today. To read an online copy, as posted on the Living Cities web site, click here.
Reviving the Renaissance: The Reviving the Renaissance overall report will be delivered to council members during Thursday’s meeting. To read background on the initiative, click here.
