Candidates for Meridian municipal offices made their final pitches to voters as to why they’re the best for the job Tuesday as the NAACP held its Mayoral Debate at The Mississippi Arts + Entertainment Experience. The event provided those running for Meridian’s mayoral and City Council seats a last opportunity to sway voters ahead of Tuesday’s general election.

 

Candidates for City Council fielded a variety of questions regarding spending priorities, commitment to transparency and their ability to find common ground across political and ideological divides. Public safety and combating crime was a top priority for all candidates with other priorities including infrastructure improvements, creating upward mobility for residents, addressing blight and developing a strategic plan to understand the overall needs in the community.

 

“One thing that I’d love for this City Council and this city to take a look at is job training,” said Tracy Tims, who is running as the Democratic nominee for Ward 3. “A lot of these young men especially, after high school, they don’t want to go to school anymore. They’re done.”

 

Kyle Waller, who is running against incumbent Councilman Dwayne Davis for Ward 2, said improving public safety and getting more police officers on the streets is critical, but the city also needs to look at the streets themselves. Many people don’t think about the underlying infrastructure the city is tasked with maintaining, he said, but they notice if it fails to work properly.

 

“It’s the simple things our citizens want, OK,” he said. “They want to be safe when they go shop and live their daily life, and they want to make sure that the water is not flooding their driveways, the water’s not pouring into their homes, that they have clean drinking water, those types of things.”

 

Tuesday’s event also featured a debate between mayoral candidates Jimmy Copeland, who is running as an Independent, and Percy Bland, who is running as the Democratic nominee.

 

Bland, who previously served as mayor of Meridian from 2013 to 2021, has emphasized past successes, community involvement and his experience in office as reasons he is best suited for the position. During his previous stint in the mayor’s office, Meridian welcomed The Mississippi Arts + Entertainment Experience, Mississippi Children’s Museum-Meridian, Threefoot Hotel and other large projects.

 

Copeland, a retired member of The Mississippi Air National Guard, has highlighted his business acumen and involvement in various boards and committees including the East Mississippi Business Development Corporation, Meridian Airport Authority, Historic Preservation Commission and Meridian Main Street.

 

Both men own successful businesses in Meridian.

 

The two candidates fielded questions concerning economic development, youth engagement, infrastructure, affordable housing, crime and more throughout the hour-long debate. Both agreed more affordable housing is needed in Meridian as well as a need for more police officers.

 

While neither candidate provided names, both said they planned to appoint a new police chief if elected. Copeland said the city’s crime problem has to be a priority as it has an impact on other efforts such as economic development.

 

“Crime is the number one issue, and if we’re going to attract businesses to come to Meridian, we’ve got to get our crime under control,” he said.

 

On the availability of public transportation, Bland, who first implemented an annual contract with the Choctaw Regional Transit, which provides transportation services to Meridianites, said he wants to look closer at the community’s needs and understand what services are and are not being met. He said he also wants to encourage entrepreneurs in the public transportation market as well.

 

“One thing that I want to do if we’re having any issues with that contract is to go back to the table and to find out what the issues are,” he said. “And any of those people who are entrepreneurs who have their own business, I want to provide an opportunity for them to do that as well.”

 

Copeland said Bland deserves thanks for bringing Choctaw Transit to Meridian. The service does have some shortcomings, which he plans to address if elected. Copeland stopped short of committing public funds for public transportation explaining such a decision would depend on the cost and the city’s ability to sustain the expense.

 

“I am not going to obligate the city of Meridian for anything that we cannot take care of long term,” he said. “We’ve had situations in Meridian where we’ve had to furlough some people, and we’ve had some budget shortfalls. We cannot go back to that point, so public transportation and the city paying for it sounds like a great idea, but we’ve got to sit down and look at the numbers.”

 

Bland said he believes Meridian needs public transportation and is willing to fight to provide it to the community. If something is necessary, he said, the money can be found to afford it.

 

“That’s the difference between myself and my opponent. When I believe that there’s something that we need, that you guys need, we’re going to fight for it, and we’re going to be and we’re going to claw with the City Council to get it done,” he said.

 

Polls will be open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday for Meridian residents to cast their votes in both City Council and mayoral races. The next administration will be sworn in and take office in July.