The attorney who’s helping Hobbs Autoplex handle its new development on Grandview Drive was on hand to answer questions during a public hearing about the project in Laurel City Hall.
But it was Mayor Johnny Magee who answered the only sensible-sounding inquiry during the short hearing, which is a formality in the process of securing Tax Increment Financing from a public entity to provide infrastructure upgrades.
Miranda Beard asked if the safety of the children at Laurel Middle School, which is across Grandview Drive, was considered when choosing a location for the new auto-sales complex, especially during the construction process.
After pointing out that was a “business decision for Kim’s,” Magee added, “and the school district chose to build in a commercial area across from where the property was for sale.”
Beard, who ran against Magee for mayor and lost in the last election, was president of the Laurel School District Board of Trustees when the LMS location was chosen and when it opened 10 years ago.
Christiana Sugg of Ridgeland-based Gouras & Associates was there to answer questions during the hearing, but there were none and the council members unanimously approved it.
Hobbs will invest more than $15 million in the project, and the TIF bonds for infrastructure improvements won’t exceed $2 million, according to the agreement. The latter “may be a joint undertaking of the city and county.”
That taxes on the property — described as “underdeveloped land that is strategically located in the city” — will increase by $77,451 per year in the city and $76,802 in the county, with an increase of $121,575 going to city school district taxes.
Annual sales are projected to reach almost $56 million with annual sales-tax rebates to the city of almost $358,000 and $76,680 to the city’s Recreation and Public Improvements Tax.
In another public hearing, there was no opposition to the city’s acceptance of the $25,500 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant, which will be used to purchase a pair of mobile pole cameras for police to use for law enforcement purposes.
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