Zoomin’ and boomin’ for the Fourth

Biloxi and the Gulf Coast usher in the four-day Fourth of July weekend with a host of long-standing Independence Day activities, including the Mississippi Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo, the Our Lady of Gulf Crab Festival, the city’s outdoor fireworks show, and, new to the lineup this year, a six-show Coliseum engagement of “Zing Zang Zoom,” the latest circus incarnation from Ringling Bros.

You’ll find the fishing rodeo on the beachfront in Long Beach this year, the OLG Crab Festival at its usual waterfront site in Bay St. Louis, the fireworks show on Monday night from Deer Island, and daily throughout the weekend, the majesty of the circus at the Coast Coliseum.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, a firm never known for understatement, bills this weekend’s circus spectacular at the Coast Coliseum as bringing “a special All-American edition of The Greatest Show On Earth to the Greatest Beaches in the World.”

Also this weekend: The Molly Ringwalds and Wynonna perform in separate shows at IP; and you’ll find performances by The Wailers, and Mitch Ryder and The Detroit Wheels at Hard Rock.

The Biloxi fireworks show will be presented from Deer Island on Monday at 9 p.m. Best viewing is from the Biloxi Lighthouse to Point Cadet. Park only in parking bays along U.S. 90; no parking in center median.

Also, remember that Biloxi Police plan to strictly enforce the ban on fireworks in the city. Harrison County has announced that fireworks will be allowed on the sand beach through July 4 at midnight.

To see details on each of the weekend’s events, courtesy of online listings from the Mississippi Gulf Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau,
click here.

Rue Magnolia gateway, bus stop to be completed in October

Construction has begun on a new Coast Transit open-air bus stop at the foot of Rue Magnolia on U.S. 90.

The downtown stop, which Eley Guild Hardy designed to tie into the existing fountains at the site, is being constructed by Starks Construction Co. and should be completed in October.

Said CTA’s Kevin Coggin: “This will be a gateway into the Rue Magnolia, and it’s a good example of cooperation between CTA, Main Street and the city.”

To see a rendering of the finished product, click here.

News and notes

Bridge work: City contractors have completed removal of the old Back Bay fishing bridge, and this week began work on removing remnants of the Point Cadet fishing bridge. Concrete is being barged to the Katrina reef, south of Deer Island. Removal should be complete in 90 to 100 days, and a new, wider and lit fishing bridge will be in place at Point Cadet in 16 months.

State award: Biloxi Main Street has won the Mississippi Main Street “Spirit of Main Street Award” for helping present the Old Biloxi Cemetery Tours each October. The accolade was presented during the 2011 Annual Awards Luncheon earlier this week in Jackson. Learn more about Biloxi Main Street by clicking here.

Webcasting: Cecilia Dobbs talks about the many programs offered by the city’s Parks and Recreation Department in this week’s City Desk webcast. To listen to the 14-minute program, taped Thursday at City Hall, click here.

Library talk: Biloxi Librarian Charline Longino and the city’s Public Affairs manager spoke about Biloxi’s commitment to libraries and the rebuilding of its downtown library during a session of the American Library Association national conference, which attracted 20,000 delegates and exhibitors to New Orleans last weekend. See video of Longino giving a post-Katrina tour of the devastated downtown library by clicking here.

Mr. Show Business: His family-oriented shows have played here many times over the years, but it was not until this week, when Ringling’s new circus rolled into the Coast Coliseum, that Kenneth Feld — the world-renowned impresario whose Feld Entertainment owns such storied brands as Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, and Disney on Ice — had made it to Biloxi. Welcome, Mr. Show Business. To read about the new installment of the circus, click here.

Council meeting: The City Council meets Tuesday afternoon at 1:30 at City Hall. Among the issues on the agenda: re-appointment of the Biloxi Plumbing Board, and measures to approve equipment purchases for the new visitors and civic centers, which are scheduled to open with afternoon ceremonies on July 14. To see the agenda for the council meeting, click here.

Traffic watch: To see the latest on road construction throughout the city, click here.