Gulfport City Council Extends Moratorium on Building
Permits for Section of City The Gulfport City Council, following an administration request, has extended the moratorium on issuing building permits for an area of the city that has seen very little recovery. The area is mostly south of the CSX railroad tracks and west of the Island View Casino in Ward 2. Several residents complained about the moratorium that the city issued earlier this year at Tuesday's council meeting. The city seeks to establish building code guidelines for the area currently zoned R2 and include implementation of a variation of the city's Smart Code system. The problem is that the administration has yet to fully define the code for that area and needs more time. Property owners in the area want to start building and can not do so until the city establishes the rules. That will be at least another 45 days, as a result of the council's vote Tuesday.
Many will remember that this is the same area that suffered from spoiled chicken and shrimp that washed from containers at the port that spilled their contents throughout the neighborhood by Katrina. The area reeked of rotting meat for months after the storm.
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Mayor
Brent Warr suggested that perhaps a method of approving building
permits on a case by case method could be established, but even then, no
decision was made by the council on such a process. The area also needs
repairs to water and sewer systems, which has yet to begin.