ESTABLISHED 1879 | COLUMBUS, MISSISSIPPI CDISPATCH.COM 50 ¢ NEWSSTAND | 40 ¢ HOME DELIVERY FRIDAY | JULY 27, 2018 EPA celebrates Kerr-McGee clean-up in Columbus Local site noted as Region hood — celebrated the EPA’s Superfund Task Force. The task force, formed in July 4 success to highlight EPA 2017, identified 42 recommendations, such as reducing timelines for site clean- Franklin Hill, director Superfund Task Force one- up and communicating with community for the Environmen- stakeholders around the sites. Those tal Protection Agency year anniversary recommendations were streamlined into Region 4, speaks to community members five goals, such as expediting clean-up, BY ISABELLE ALTMAN about the progress [email protected] encouraging private investment and en- of the former Colum- ergizing stakeholders — things EPA Re- bus Kerr-McGee site Partnerships between local, state and gion 4 Superfund Director Franklin Hill Thursday morning. federal governments was the theme at said EPA, MDEQ and the Greenfield En- Representatives a celebration of clean-up at Superfund vironmental Multi-State Trust had been from the Mississippi doing at Columbus’ old Kerr-McGee site Department of En- sites at the former Kerr-McGee site on vironmental Quality 14th Avenue North on Thursday. over the last seven years. and the Greenfield The event — attended by city officials “We’re already on the cusp of that,” Environmental and representatives from the Environ- Hill said. “We’re already taking early ac- Multistate Trust also mental Protection Agency, the Missis- tions in this community.” spoke to members sippi Department of Environmental Kerr-McGee operated a wood-treat- of the community. Quality and the surrounding neighbor- See KERR-MCGEE, 6A Mary Pollitz/Dispatch Staff MSU plans to SNAKES ALIVE! break ground on new parking garage this fall Parking permit prices increase to help cover construction cost BY INDIA YARBOROUGH [email protected] Mississippi State University will break ground this fall on a $9 million parking garage, said Jeremi- ah Dumas, director of the university’s Parking and Transit Services. Dumas The new parking garage — which Dumas expects will take about 18 months to complete — should provide an additional 500 spots on campus. “As an auxiliary of the univer- sity, we have responsibility for the maintenance of our parking lots and the construction of new park- ing lots,” Dumas said. “In the past Luisa Porter/Dispatch Staff four years, we’ve been working Herpetologist Terry “The Snake Man” Vandeventer visited the Columbus-Lowndes Public Library Tuesday to present an inter- through a very detailed analysis active educational session about snakes to area children. Vandeventer, of Jackson, owns The Living Reptile Museum and is a of what our parking needs are. ... herpetology field associate with the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science in Jackson. He also owns more than 200 snakes. We’ve come to the realization we need a new parking supply on the north side of campus.” Dumas said the new parking garage has been a topic of discus- sion for several years. His office re- ceived approval for the project from First senior convocation draws 100 participants Mississippi’s Institutions for High- er Learning in May 2017. The garage, Dumas said, will Amyah Kahey, 17, Local schools, Chamber of Commerce occupy the north side of campus cheers on a classmate because that area is most suited to who won a raffle prize partner to bring time of prayer, motivation during the inaugural handle additional traffic. That side Community-wide Class BY MARY POLLITZ lumbus Lowndes Chamber of campus is accessible by high- of 2019 Convocation [email protected] of Commerce, invited stu- ways 12 and 182. at Mississippi Universi- dents from all schools with- “On game days, the north side More than 100 students, ty for Women’s Nissan in the county. Although the of campus will clear hours before Auditorium Thursday. teachers and parents attend- chamber helped organize the south side of campus does,” he Amyah is the daughter ed Lowndes County’s first added. of Deborah Burleson community-wide convoca- the event, the program was Dumas said the majority of his of Columbus and is tion on Mississippi Univer- led by rising high-school se- department’s funds come from now a senior at the sity for Women’s campus niors who attended. Golden Triangle Early Last week, Cherie Labat, parking permit sales. To offset College High School Thursday night. the multi-million dollar coast of at East Mississippi The county-wide convo- Columbus Municipal School the parking garage, permit prices Community College. cation, orchestrated by the District superintendent, See MSU PARKING, 3A Luisa Porter/Dispatch Staff Education Committee of Co- See CONVOCATION, 6A WEATHER FIVE QUESTIONS CALENDAR LOCAL FOLKS PUBLIC 1 What did William and Ralph Foster St. Advance tickets $15 MEETINGS Saturday for CAC members/$17 July 30: Conven- start making in Melbourne, Australia, ■ Dancing in the Park: in 1887? nonmembers. Tickets tion and Visitors Celebrate National 2 What song did “Weird Al” Yankovic at the door are $20 for Dance Day with dance Bureau Board parody with “My Bologna”? members/$22 non- and movement from retreat, 8:30 3 What word means both “to steal” members. Get tickets 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. at a.m., Burnt Oak and “police officer”? at columbus-arts.org or 4 What does HTML stand for? McKee Park in Starkville. Lodge, Crawford Charlotte Chaltry 662-328-2787 5 What does karate mean — “empty Bring lawn chairs or blan- July 30: Colum- Pre-K, Annunciation ■ Because Hayden II: hand,” “pleasure of impact,” of “silent kets. Presented by KMG bus Municipal pain”? This fundraiser in memo- Creations. Free. Visit School District ry of the late Hayden Al- High 89 Low 68 kmgcreationsfp.com. public hearing Answers, 6B len benefits the Hayden Mostly sunny on school bud- Full forecast on Allen Kids’ Education get, 5:30 p.m., page 2A. Sunday Fund and a medical fund Brandon Central ■ Aidan Dunkelberg for Hannah Hitchcock. INSIDE in concert: Aidan Enjoy live music and food Services Dunkelberg presents a at Zachary’s in down- July 31: Lown- Classifieds6B Obituaries 5A fiddle concert at 3 p.m. town Columbus from 1-7 des County Comics 4B Opinions 4A at the Columbus Arts p.m. For sponsorship in- Supervisors, 9 Crossword 5B Religion 5B Council’s Rosenzweig formation, contact Colin Molly Munson likes to a.m., Court- 139TH YEAR, NO. 117 Dear Abby 4B Arts Center, 501 Main Krieger, 662-329-7653. draw, paint and dance. house DISPATCH CUSTOMER SERVICE 328-2424 | NEWSROOM 328-2471 2A FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2018 THE DISPATCH • www.cdispatch.com SAY WHAT? DID YOU HEAR? “It is home to me, which is one reason why I am invested in it. ... I didn’t play softball, but I was walking the same halls. I had some of Facebook’s day of reckoning: the same teachers, and some of the coaches are still here.” Blip or sign of broader turn? Friday Caledonia High School softball coach Andy Finch. Story, 1B. Tech company’s shares plunged 19 percent, the biggest one-day drop A THOUSAND WORDS in stock market history BY BARBARA ORTUTAY an earlier battering over AP Technology Writer its big privacy scandal, in which a political con- NEW YORK — Face- sulting firm with ties to book faced a day of reck- President Donald Trump oning Thursday as its improperly accessed the shares plunged in the big- data of tens millions of gest one-day drop in stock Facebook users. market history. Now come the big The 19 percent drop va- questions: Is this a tem- porized $119 billion of the porary setback, or the company’s stock-market start of a painful new road value; CEO Mark Zucker- for the giant social net- berg saw his net worth fall work? And does a similar by roughly $16 billion as a comeuppance await other result. It was Facebook’s high-flying technology be- worst trading day since hemoths? going public in 2012; the Both the slower growth collapse eclipsed Intel’s forecast and heavier decline of $91 billion in spending reflect problems September 2000, without largely of Facebook’s own Luisa Porter/Dispatch Staff From left, Gunner Allen, 6, Gage Allen, 7, and Anna Grace Allen, 4, play at Lee Park in Columbus Tuesday. The adjusting for inflation. making. The plunge followed playground tower was carved and painted to resemble the clock tower at Mississippi University for Women. New European priva- “We are going to the beach this week in Alabama and I’m gonna actually swim in the ocean,” Gage said. The Facebook’s warning late cy rules, inspired in part siblings’ parents are Graham and Ellisa Allen of Caledonia. Wednesday that its reve- by Facebook’s relentless nue growth will slow down mining of its own users’ significantly for at least the data, are starting to ham- remainder of the year and per the company’s adver- that expenses will contin- tising business. And the AREA OBITUARIES ue to skyrocket. increased spending aims, In a sign of just how among other things, to COMMERCIAL DISPATCH late Jimmy Willie Harri- was a 1979 graduate of Cemetery. Visitation bullish investor expecta- prevent a replay of the OBITUARY POLICY son Sr. and Flora Ellis. Noxubee High School. will be from 4-7 p.m. tions were, though, the fake news and propaganda Obituaries with basic informa- He was a 1973 gradu- In addition to his par- Friday at the funeral tion including visitation and collapse merely returned that Russian agents un- service times, are provided ate of Noxubee High ents, he was preceded home. Tisdale-Lann Facebook shares to a lev- leashed on an unguarded free of charge.