Poll of Vicksburg voters show there’s strong support for new sports complex, but divided support on how to fund it

Published 10:44 pm Saturday, February 20, 2016

A telephone poll conducted Feb.11 for the city of Vicksburg indicates city residents still support the construction of a sports complex on city-owned property, but are divided over levying a 2 percent sales tax on hotel rooms and food and beverage sales to fund it.

The poll, conducted by Jackson-based Prism Surveys, surveyed 419 registered city voters using a computerized calling system that instructed people to use their telephone keypads to answer questions.

Flaggs said he wanted the second poll, which cost $2,000, to get a second opinion from the residents and to get their opinion on the when to hold the referendum on the 2 percent tax.

Email newsletter signup

Sign up for The Vicksburg Post's free newsletters

Check which newsletters you would like to receive
  • Vicksburg News: Sent daily at 5 am
  • Vicksburg Sports: Sent daily at 10 am
  • Vicksburg Living: Sent on 15th of each month

“It asked two questions that were not asked in the first poll — when to hold the election and to see where they wanted to put the site,” he said. “We also asked if they though the city should buy land for the complex.”

It was the second poll conducted by the city on a proposed sports complex for Vicksburg. An Oct. 10 poll conducted by Hayes Dent Strategies, which polled 1,740 residents, produced similar results.

According to information accompanying the new poll, voters who were likely to vote in elections based their past voting history were contacted, and people responding to the poll were asked to identify if they were black or white, man or woman, and give their age.

According to the poll, 66 percent of the people responding indicated they would support a sports complex that would increase recreational sports fields for local residents and allow the city to host more overnight stays. The response was up 2 percent from the October poll.

A majority of the residents polled also said they preferred the city build the park on land it owns off Fisher Ferry Road, but only 40 percent said they would support a 2 percent sales tax on hotel rooms and food and beverage sales at restaurants, while 35 percent opposed the tax and 25 percent were undecided.

The result was different from the October poll, in which only 49 percent said they supported the tax. The Legislature in 2015 approved a bill meant strictly for Vicksburg that allows the city to levy the tax with the approval of city voters. Sixty percent of the voters voting in the election must approve the tax.

In a related question on the referendum, the majority of the people asked, 74 percent, said the city should hold a referendum on the special tax in 2017 with the general municipal elections.

Prism owner Brad Chism said the number of people surveyed was based on the city’s budget for the poll.

“The goal was to get 403 people, which was (to get) the margin of error,” he said. “We were able to get a few more and we left it at that.”

He said Prism had a database of all the registered voters in Vicksburg, “and we recruited and sampled any household that voted in any of the last six elections. What we essentially did is call the households with active voters.”

Chism said those contacted all had landline telephones, adding federal law prohibits doing electronic surveys involving cell phones.

“We do lots of live operator polls with both landlines and cell phones. I think the city’s budget for this was limited such that we couldn’t do a live household poll,” Chism said.

To get an idea of local views on a sports complex, The Vicksburg Post went to Halls Ferry and Bazinsky parks to ask some residents either participating in a sport or watching others play tennis or baseball.

The majority questioned said they supported a sports complex and would support the 2 percent sales tax.

“We’ve been talking about it for 20 years,” Alan Cialone said. “I used to play softball and played on the fields here. I think it will be a good thing, because it’s something we need. It will help the city.”

Cynthia Staun, who said she has “played on just about every field and court here” while growing up in Vicksburg, said the complex would help the city because it will attract people and tournaments and bring people here.

She believes hotels and restaurants will make up the additional tax “because of the increased business from people coming here for tournaments.”

“I’m all for it. I have two sons playing in leagues in Jackson. Why go to Jackson when you can come here and play,” said Ray Steed, who was pitching batting practice to his son Brandon at one of the Halls Ferry ball fields.

Mincer Minor, who coaches a junior league team, said a sports complex is needed.

“We’ve been talking about it for a long time and we need to do it,” he said. “We go to other places to play. People talk about the facilities in Madison and Jackson and other metro areas, but the smaller towns like Carrollton and Wynona have very good fields and complexes. If we’re not going to build a sports complex, they ought to at least fix the fields we have.”

Minor believes voters will support the 2 percent tax, because “a facility here will not only help baseball, but all of the community.”

“It will give the kids something to do, and we need an indoor facility so kids can have a place to go and play when it’s cold,” Richard Bass said. He said he didn’t know too much about the tax, “but I think it would be good.”

At Bazinsky Park, where St. Aloysius was playing Greenville St. Joseph in baseball, several fans favored the complex and the tax.

“I’m for it,” Tim Raines said.

Keith Paxton agreed. “It will bring in people, and attract businesses to put up advertising to support it,” he said.

Buddy Strickland said he supported the sales tax because it put the least burden on the taxpayers, “and people who come here and stay in the hotels and eat in the restaurants will pay it and spread the tax burden.

“It (the sports complex) is long overdue,” he said.

About John Surratt

John Surratt is a graduate of Louisiana State University with a degree in general studies. He has worked as an editor, reporter and photographer for newspapers in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post staff since 2011 and covers city government. He and his wife attend St. Paul Catholic Church and he is a member of the Port City Kiwanis Club.

email author More by John