Police hope to see large turnout for pill program

Biloxi Police Lt. Michael Wills says he wouldn’t be surprised if this weekend’s drug take-back program tops the 10,000 pills that residents dropped off in November when the police conducted a similar program.

On Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., residents are being asked to drop off any unneeded or expired prescription drugs at the Lopez-Quave Public Safety Center on Porter Avenue.

The take-back program is a project originated by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, which hopes to avoid the risks of drug abuse and environmental damage caused by flushing controlled substances down the toilet or throwing them away.

You can hear Lt. Wills discuss the program and hear about other city news in this week’s City Desk webcast. To listen to the 14-mintue program, which also features Police Chief John Miller, click here.

Visitors Center furnishings on council agenda

Mayor A.J. Holloway will ask the Biloxi City Council on Tuesday for approval to purchase more than $65,000 in furnishings for the new visitors center, where construction workers are in the final weeks of work.

The visitors center resolutions — four in all — are among the nearly 20 measures on the agenda for the City Council meeting on Tuesday afternoon at 1:30 at City Hall. Incidentally, federal funding or insurance proceeds would be used to buy the furnishings.

Meantime, Historical Administrator Bill Raymond reports that both the visitors center and civic center will be opening a week or so after Memorial Day, which had been their original target dates.

“There has never been a construction project on the magnitude of these two multi-million projects that hasn’t had some sort of hiccup right at the end,” Raymond said. “At the visitors center, we had to wait on federal approval for a water line that’s being done now instead of us coming back and disturbing the landscaping later at the site. That approval took a little longer than we had hoped, and at the same time we’re fine-tuning the exhibits inside the facility.

“Over on Howard Avenue, at the civic center and library, the special wood being used on the ceilings is a little short,” Raymond said, “and the company that makes it can’t get it to us until the end of May. We didn’t want to open that facility and be short about 10 feet of ceiling.”

News and notes

Libraries closed: The trailer that had been serving as a temporary library from behind the Gruich Community Center, and the Local History and Geneology on the third floor of the U.S. Post Offfice have both closed as staff prepare for the move into new quarters on Howard Avenue in several weeks.

Weekend entertainment: You’ll find a fishing tournament at Point Cadet this weekend, while Lilly Tomlin’s at the Hard Rock, Sammy Hagar and the Wabos visit the IP, and a mustang show rolls into the Isle.
For details on these events and others taking place this weekend, click here.

Good sports: The sports teams in Biloxi Public Schools have won 10 district championships this school year, and tonight and Saturday teams are taking part in playoffs for baseball, softball and track. To read about the winning teams, click here.