Jackson’s newest elected leaders have been in office for less than a month, but we are already encouraged by their fast start.
Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and Ward Seven Councilwoman Virgi Lindsay deserve a thumbs up for their handling of recent flash floods on the Northside. City staffers are due equal recognition for their response to a water main break that occurred in Belhaven a week later.
On July 10, a brief but heavy storm caused flash flooding in Belhaven, Fondren and Midtown, including on Riverside Drive and in the neighborhoods just south of it. Days later, on July 17, some of the same neighborhoods that experienced flooding reported more water problems when a 16-inch main on Riverside burst.
A rough start for a new mayor and council, which also must address potentially billions of dollars in infrastructure needs, low pay for city workers, and what is promising to be an already lean 2018 fiscal year budget.
Lindsay was meeting with the Sun on the afternoon of the floods, and received a phone call from a resident notifying her of the problem. She immediately went out to the scene, took pictures and talked to residents. She then reached out to Lumumba.
Approximately 2.5 inches of rain fell in less than an hour, causing Belhaven Creek to overflow into the low-lying areas along St. Mary Street, St. Ann Street, and other areas.
Lumumba credited Lindsay for informing him of the problem, and for his part told the Sun that addressing drainage would be a top priority for his administration.
This is encouraging news. Flooding in the area has been a problem for years but rarely has been discussed. Here’s hoping Lumumba follows through on his promise of finding a funding mechanism to address it.
As for the water main break, crews from public works, as well as the city’s new constituent services manager, Keyshia Sanders, deserve a pat on the back.
Sanders said the city was notified of the break around 11 a.m. Shortly after that, public works was on the scene assessing the site. By 1 p.m., work to make the repairs began, and by 3 p.m., the line was fixed and water service was restored.
During the outage, Sanders went door-to-door notifying residents of the problem. She also was at the work site, answering questions when joggers, walkers and others came up. This is constituent services at its best, and something we hope to see more of in the coming years.
In May, Lumumba won 55 percent of the popular vote in a crowded Democratic primary. He avoided a runoff - a sure sign that voters are confident in his ability to lead the city. We, too, are confident he and the city are moving in the right direction.
Anthony Warren is a staff writer for the Northside Sun.
