Tuesday, the Poplarville Board of Aldermen held public hearings for two derelict properties and also heard from Pearl River County Hospital and Nursing Home administrator Steve Vaughan about plans to expand their pediatric program.
Prior to the hearings, Poplarville City Code Enforcement Officer Guy Ray Holston informed the board letters were mailed to property owners and documents posted on the property alerting them that action had to be taken to clean the lots after the last aldermen meeting.
The first property involved was 109 E. Orr St., which Holston said contained remnants from a fire. No one was in attendance at the meeting to speak for or against the matter.
The second property discussed was 201 Mimosa Street. Holston said this property has been unkempt for a couple of years and the fence is falling down. No representative for the property was in attendance.
The board voted to declare both properties as a public nuisance, giving the city the right to clean them.
Poplarville Board Attorney Nick Thompson said after cleanup is completed, the board will assess the cost of cleanup as a tax lien or civil debt.
In another matter, Vaughn spoke to the board about the hospital’s plan to place a commercial modular building, which was donated by the county to the hospital, at 302 Hwy. 11 S.
The modular building will be utilized as an expansion to the hospital’s pediatric and younger behavioral health program, Vaughan said.
“From the rear of the modular building we propose to place behind the clinic, we need a variance for coming up to five feet from the back of the property,” Vaughan said.
Poplarville Mayor Brad Necaise said there was no action required at Tuesday’s meeting. Once the application is complete, it will be sent to the Pearl River County Board of Supervisors for consideration at their next meeting on July 22, after which, the application will be sent to the Poplarville Planning Commission on July 30. The Board will have the opportunity to vote on the matter in August, which will allow the allotted time for the proper notices to be published in the newspaper and displayed on the property and at the courthouse.

In other action the board:
–– Heard from Pearl River County District III Supervisor candidate Hudson Holliday regarding his plans should he be elected to the Pearl River County Board of Supervisors this year.
Holliday is a former supervisor and lifelong resident of Pearl River County. Holliday spoke of many projects he worked on during his tenure as supervisor from 2008 to 2012, including a cleanup campaign, the establishment of Highland Community Hospital and Poplarville’s City Park.
“As a supervisor, we need to have a working relationship,” Holliday said, “to sit down in this room and come up with a 5-year plan and discuss what projects we need to do that we can work together to accomplish. This election is really important because geographically, Pearl River County is located on the I-59 corridor, the first high ground out of New Orleans. We’ve got to create an environment where people want to live and bring their business.”
Necaise said meetings are open to any candidate who wishes to address the board.
The next Poplarville Board of Aldermen meeting will be held on Tuesday, July 21 at 5 p.m. in the boardroom a