More people than originally anticipated will arrive in Vicksburg this summer and take up residency at the former All Saints’ Episcopal School as members of the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps.

“We were going to start with 80 members, but the great news is we will now begin with 160,” Jules Hampton, AmeriCorps NCCC regional deputy director, told the Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen Wednesday. 

The Episcopal diocese of Mississippi, which co-owns the school with the Episcopal dioceses of Louisiana, Arkansas and Western Louisiana, is leasing 75 percent of the 40-acre complex to AmeriCorps, a government service program launched 15 years ago. It will be the fifth such AmeriCorps complex in the country, and the only one in the Southern region. The All Saints’ campus operated as a religious boarding school for nearly a century until 2006, when regular classes ceased. 

Renovations on the century-old Confederate Avenue building have been ongoing since December, and five AmeriCorps NCCC administrators began working in Vicksburg fulltime as of late January. Hampton said seven more administrators will arrive in May, followed by 20 team leaders on July 6 and 140 members on July 31.

“They’ll be here and working by the end of August,” he said. “You’ll have 160 members looking for things to do in the Vicksburg community.”

AmeriCorps NCCC is a 10-month residential service program for men and women ages 18 to 24, with other campuses located in Denver, Sacramento, Perry Point, Md., and Vinton, Iowa. The 160 trainees in Vicksburg will be divided into 14 teams, said Hampton, which will partner with nonprofit organizations, state and local agencies, faith-based and community organizations to help complete service projects across a 12-state region. 

AmeriCorps NCCC program director Rich Smith said all the members’ initial volunteer projects will be in Mississippi.

“We’d like a large percentage of those projects to be in the Vicksburg area,” he said.

Hampton and Smith said they would begin meeting with local nonprofit and faith-based organizations today to see where volunteers are needed in Vicksburg. They invited any such group interested in partnering with AmeriCorps to call the campus at 601-638-1402. They also encouraged anyone 18 to 24 who is interested in joining AmeriCorps to contact the campus for more information.

“This is the biggest deal to happen in our community in a long time,” said Mayor Laurence Leyens. “It’s a big, big win for Vicksburg.”

The first phase of renovations to the administrative offices has been completed, said Hampton, and work began Tuesday on the dormitories.

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On the agenda

Meeting Wednesday, the Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen:

• Approved board meeting minutes from Feb. 25.

• Recognized city employees for anniversaries: Eddie Henderson, 20 years, gas department; Robert McAdam, 20 years, traffic department; Michael Puckett, 15 years, fire department; and Johnny Puckett, 40 years, building and maintenance department.

• Proclaimed April Child Abuse Prevention Month.

• Received proposals for carbon dioxide conversion and filter upgrades at the Vicksburg Water Treatment Plant from Greenbriar Construction, $235,140; Hemphill Construction Co. Inc., $231,900; Peck Construction Inc., $237,660; and Plass Inc., $262,885.

• Received bids for approximately 120 line item traffic and management supplies from Custom Products Corp. of Flowood.

• Approved a request to waive the rule for advertising for bids for any purchases over $1,500, and agreed to purchase a used Hobart Tug and Ground Power Unit for $2,600 for the Vicksburg Municipal Airport.

• Agreed to purchase a used 1985 fuel truck from Frank May, a Vicksburg Municipal Airport employee, for $8,600.

• Authorized applying to the U.S. Department of Justice for funding under the fiscal year 2009 COPS Hiring Recovery Program.

• Authorized the mayor to amend a lease with Pinnacle Towers.

• Terminated hangar leases at Vicksburg Municipal Airport with Brown Com-AG Inc., Billy Vinson and Jim Hankins Jr.

• Approved a request from the parks and recreation department for about $1,000 to purchase tennis balls and concession items for the Beverly O’Neal Tennis Tournament at the Halls Ferry Tennis Facility on April 3-5.

• Approved $2,310.50 for Vicksburg Main Street advertising in April.

• Approved a request from the Vicksburg Main Street to use a portion of the city sidewalks for various musical entertainers to perform, and to waive the open container ordinance, on April 2 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. for the “Hit the Bricks” customer appreciation night.

• Approved $10,000 for the Four Seasons of the Arts Fourth of July fireworks event.

• Tabled a request from WVBG V-105.5 radio station for a $1,485 sponsorship for the Miss Mississippi and Miss Outstanding Teen Scholarship pageants.

• Approved a $100 sponsorship to River City Rescue Mission for its annual golf tournament.

• Approved a $1,454.10 invoice from the Vicksburg-Tallulah Regional Airport.

• Tabled reimbursing $2,235 to the Vicksburg Convention Center for advertising at the Jackson International Airport.

• Approved adding Reginald Gaines in the sewer department to the employee driving department.

• Approved the February budget report.

• Approved reports on the city sexton, privilege license, monthly tax collection and mayor and treasurer.

• Approved the claims docket. 

In executive session, the board:

• Approved three longevity pay raises for employees in the gas, traffic and fire departments.

• Approved hiring one employee in each the sewer and right of way departments.

• Approved one pay adjustment in the fire department.

• Accepted one retirement in the police department.

• Approved one termination in each the police, gas and fire departments.

• Discussed two personnel matters.

• Discussed one possible litigation matter. 

The next board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday at 10 a.m. in room 109 of the City Hall Annex, 1415 Walnut St.

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Contact Steve Sanoski at ssanoski@vicksburgpost.com