The March issue of BNews Monthly, dubbed “March Madness,” will be arriving in mailboxes and P.O. boxes across the city in a day or two, with a preview of the approaching Mardi Gras parades and a heads up on what else is in store for March.
Of course, the biggest question is answered right away: The routes for Neptune and Gulf Coast Carnival will be paved in time for the parades, but the 50,000 to 80,000 paradegoers are being reminded the parades will be occurring in or near construction zones. You’ll find parades maps and times for Carnival and St. Paddy in the newsletter, along with safety tips to keep in mind before, during and after parades.
In all, the 16-page issue includes a dozen stories, a March calendar of events, a Back in the Day column, Nick L. Shrimp, and 11 community-minded advertisers who help the city produce the newsletter with minimal taxpayer cost.
See the March issue of BNews Monthly
Businesses: Have a message for all of Biloxi?
Infrastructure: The dirt on the North Contract
Each month, the city’s Engineering Department publishes a host of maps showing progress on the infrastructure work taking place north and south of the CSX railway in East Biloxi.
The detailed maps – eight of them in all – show water, sewer, drainage and paving status as of Feb. 13 on Oscar Renda’s work on 55 miles of streets north of the railway, and Hemphill’s work on eight miles of streets south of the railway.
This month, the array of maps also includes a new map – the remaining dirt roads north of the railway. Those roadways include parts of several major thoroughfares: Forrest, Porter, Reynoir, and Main.
Says City Engineer Christy LeBatard: “People have heard about how the curtain is coming down on the North Contract, yet they still hear about dirt roads. This map gives them a clear understanding of the roadways that still need paving north of CSX.”
Map: See the Dirt on the North Contract
Maps: See the status on infrastructure north and south of railway
Video: See the latest progress
Carnival news & notes: Images from the weekend
Children’s parade: It was a milestone event Saturday when the Children’s Mardi Gras Walking Parade became the first event to cross the bricks on Howard Avenue. To see a video clip, click here. To see dozens of images from the parade and costume and float contest afterward, click here.
Paws on parade: Hundreds of canines of all shapes, sizes and colors turned out Sunday for the Bow-Wow Pawrade, also known as the Krewe of Barkloxi. To see a two-minute reel of the procession, with a ruff soundtrack, click here.
News & notes: Schedules, week in review
Council meeting: The City Council meets Tuesday afternoon at 1:30 at City Hall. The agenda includes a host of land-use and zoning issues, the appointment of Kay Frances-Horne to the Biloxi school board, and measures involving on-going capital projects. To read the agenda and supporting documents, click here.
Projects update: Here’s the latest on three high-profile projects: Still no word on when the section of Howard Avenue between Reynoir and Lameuse streets will fully open to traffic. CAO Mike Leonard reports that April 1 is the target date for the bait shop to open at Popp’s Ferry Causeway Park. No word on when Reynoir between CSX and Division will be paved.
Week in review: So just how busy was last week in Biloxi? Get the word from the departments of Fire, Police, Community Development and Engineering. To read their respective reports covering last week’s activities, click here.
