The New "IT" Place in Belhaven

Northside Sun: Basil’s expands to Belhaven; takes Brent’s Drugs locale

Belhaven resident arrested for property violations

JPD arrested 69 year old Howard Gober on Sunday night, charging him with failure to maintain his properties. Gober, who lives at 1426 St. Mary Street (his boyhood home) and owns properrty on Greenview Drive, Archer Avenue and Keener Avenue, has been cited previously by code enforcement officers. In March, officers tried to arrest Gober for failure to appear in environmental court, but Gober fled. Read the full stories at WLBT.com and ClarionLedger.com

Neighborhood Night in the Park

Sunday, Laurel Street Park hosted the annual Belhaven Neighborhood Night in the Park. WLBT has the report with video.

Barrett-Simon Robbery Update

WLBT reports: A $200,000 bond has been set for John Mangum Jr, accused of robbing Jackson Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon and her husband.

The Clarion Ledger reports: "Margaret Barrett-Simon said Thursday she never positively identified John Wayne Mangum Jr. as the person who robbed her and her husband outside their Belhaven home June 9. She said she told authorities the person in the picture had facial features similar to the robber. Barrett-Simon said neither she nor her husband has been asked by police to come down and try to identify Mangum, who was arrested Tuesday on two counts of armed robbery. 'We believe if we see him in person, we could tell if he is the one,' Barrett-Simon said. Barrett-Simon said also the person who robbed them appeared to be about 5-foot-10 in height, whereas Mangum appears to be shorter from what she has seen in television reports....Police are looking for another suspect who may have been involved in the robbery, Scott said Thursday."

But another Ledger report says, "Jackson police say they have enough evidence against the suspect in the robbery of City Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon despite her statement she never positively identified him. Police Department spokesman Sgt. Jeffrey Scott said the reason Barrett-Simon is uneasy is because the man she chose in the photo lineup, John Wayne Mangum Jr., had just gotten a haircut. 'At the time of the robbery, he had an Afro,' Scott said. 'But when he found out we were looking for him, he went into a barber shop.'

Basil's Belhaven

From the Clarion Ledger:

BASIL'S TO OPEN BELHAVEN EATERY

Nathan Glenn, owner of Rooster's and Basil's, has notified the Greater Belhaven Neighborhood Foundation he will open a Basil's restaurant in early fall in the former Brent's of Belhaven location.

The restaurant will be called Basil's of Belhaven and, for the first time, he is adding an evening menu to Basil's.

Margaret Barrett Robbery Update

A suspect has been arrested in the armed robbery of Margaret Barrett-Simon.

The Clarion Ledger reports: "John Wayne Mangum, 20, is being held in the Hinds County Detention Center without bond, charged with two counts of armed robbery, according to the Police Department. Police arrested Mangum after Barrett-Simon picked him out of a photo lineup....Mangum was arrested in March on a misdemeanor marijuana charge and in 2005 on a felony receiving stolen property charge, according to court records. Both cases are pending."

WAPT and WLBT both have reports as well.

Belhaven College Arts

Today's Clarion Ledger writes, "Belhaven College is among a stellar group of America’s institutions with all four of its arts majors — theatre, visual art, music and dance — nationally accredited....Belhaven is among only 25 colleges and universities in the nation that can boast arts accreditation by four independent national organizations...including the University of Southern Mississippi, Florida State University, the University of Alabama, James Madison University, Ohio University, Arizona, and Ohio State. Belhaven is among four schools in the Southeast with that distinction." Read the full story here.

North State Street

The Clarion Ledger writes about the developments on North State Street:

More than $50 million is being invested in construction projects on five blocks of North State Street between Baptist Medical Center and the high-rise once known as Magnolia Towers.

Construction is under way at Baptist Medical Center on a $40 million expansion, while a few blocks away, face-lifts are taking place at two high-rise residential buildings and several smaller buildings.

"Investors are realizing the potential of the area," said Virgi Lindsay, executive director of the Greater Belhaven Neighborhood Foundation. "There's a strong economic base in the area. We have about $60 million in expendable income in this neighborhood."

...Sapheneia Medical Minimally Invasive Therapy Institute at 932 N. State St., which looks more like a boutique hotel than a medical clinic, has led the way in renovating the area. The clinic opened in August.

...Across the street from Sapheneia and down a block, the four-story City View Apartments building at 827 N. State St. is being transformed into luxury condominiums with a rooftop terrace. Tropical landscaping and gating will be added.

...At North State and Barksdale streets, a $5 million renovation is under way to update Magnolia Towers. Construction is expected to be complete this fall, and the building will be known then by its address, 809 State St., said Bill Hardin, manager of special projects for Park Development in Jackson.

...Admiral Extended Stay and Retirement Center at 905 N. State St. has been revamped and is marketing itself as an extended-stay facility for patients at the area's medical centers, Lindsay said.

...Baptist Medical Center has the largest project under way - construction of a six-story tower on the west side of the hospital. It should be complete in the fall of 2008.

...Baptist Medical Center recently purchased the former Church's Fried Chicken location at North State and Carlisle streets and tore the building down. Plans are to landscape the lot and use it for additional parking for Medical Arts East, Channell said. Baptist owns about 40 acres on State Street, including the building located next to McDonald's.

Wesley Wilson, owner of Jackson Brace & Limb Co. at 1320 N. State St., is completing renovations of the building next door at 1316 N. State St., said his daughter, Rebecca Dickerson. The two buildings are across from Baptist Medical Center.

...Tom Ross, president of Ross and Associates, is renovating a 7,000-square-foot building at 925 N. State St. The building once housed a medical supply company. He expects to have it complete in 90 days and plans for his business to occupy the center portion.

...Allen Langford, owner of United Medical Recovery medical collections agency at 950 N. State St., recently purchased a building at 960 N. State St. for another business he owns, Langford Financial Services commercial debt collection. He plans to invest $60,000 in the building, which was once a podiatrist's clinic....

Barrett-Simon Robbery

Police have released a sketch of the man who robbed Margaret Barrett-Simon on Saturday.

With rumors abounding that the robbery might have been for intimidation or shock purposes to affect her decisions on the council, a WLBT report says:

Jackson Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon says the man who robbed her and her husband al at gunpoint outside their Belhaven home Saturday was not your typical armed robber. "Almost as an afterthought he said he wanted my purse," she says.

But Barrett-Simon won't go so far as to say it might have been orchestrated. "I'll let the law enforcement officers determine that. What we did come to believe, after thinking through this, is robbery was not the primary motive."

Meanwhile, the Clarion Ledger reports that the Belhaven neighborhood is stepping up private security:

Residents of Jackson's Belhaven neighborhood are stepping up private patrol hours following the weekend armed robbery of City Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon. The Greater Belhaven Security Association has asked Securitas International Security Service to double its daytime hours because residents say more crimes are being committed when homeowners are away at work or running errands.

Cory Wilson who is running to represent the Belhaven area in the State House of Representatives (H66) has some interesting ideas to fight Jackson crime. He wants to establish a Capital Security and Economic Development District:

Wilson’s proposed District would have its own police force (a strengthened Capitol Police), designated judicial resources, and funding for infrastructure and beautification. The District would include areas around the Fairgrounds, the State Capitol Complex, UMC, and other state facilities, many of which are located in and around District 66.

Wilson’s proposed District would allow the State to compensate Jackson for tax-exempt state and non-profit properties through extra law enforcement. JPD would be freed up to patrol in our neighborhoods. Our overburdened justice system would be reinforced to speed up and increase convictions. The proposal also includes resources to make sure that once criminals are caught, they stay in jail. Wilson’s proposed District would help create a real deterrent to criminals and make Jackson’s assets as the state capital stronger.

College wins at CPRAM

Belhaven College won six awards at the annual College Public Relations Association of Mississippi (CPRAM) conference including three First Place Awards.

• First Place- “Belhaven’s Trip to the Final Four,” Sports Article, published in the Tartan, written by Michael Dukes

• First Place- “MyChoice. Belhaven,” Viewbook, created by Kevin Russell, Suzanne Sullivan, Bryant Butler, John Brower, Marilee Olps, and Erin Fultz

• First Place- “Remembering 1895,” Photo Artwork, published in the Tartan, by Bryant Butler

• Second Place- “The Belhaven Tartan,” Institutional Magazine, created by the Integrated Marketing Department

• Second Place- “The Arts Brochure Series,” 2 color brochures for Dance, Music, Theatre, and Visual Arts, created by the Integrated Marketing Department

• Third Place- “The Night the Ropes Came Down” Feature Article, published in the Tartan, written by Michael Dukes

(Full story here)

Couple of Things

Orley Hood writes about the Belhaven neighborhood in context of the Barrett robbery.

One way to avoid the crime, go online. Belhaven College now has online classes.

ATV Update

An update on the ATV complaints in the neighborhood.

Belhaven councilwoman robbed at shotgun point

Jackson Councilwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon and her husband were robbed at shotgunpoint on their porch in the 1300 block of Hazel Street at 2pm on Saturday. The Clarion Ledger and WLBT both provide more details.

Northside Sun

The Northside Sun has several articles of interest to Belhaven types this week.

Significant improvements under way for Belhaven neighborhood

Property owners who would be affected by the creation of the Two Lakes project to receive survey

Six Northside streets slated for resurfacing as part of 2007 plan