The Takeover of the Jackson Airport | Jackson Free Press | Jackson, MS

The Takeover of the Jackson Airport

JFP's coverage of the ongoing debate over ownership of the Jackson Airport.

City & County

Court: No Voters' Right to Govern Airport, OK to Hide Communications

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Capital-city residents do not have the right to govern the Jackson Medgar-Evers Wiley Airport or subpoena records from Mississippi legislators who voted to take over control of the facility, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled late last month.

Business

Rosie L.T.P. Johnson ‘Loved All Things Jackson’

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A commissioner of the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority Board, Rosie L.T.P. Johnson, passed away late last week. The current JMAA chairman, James L. Henley, Jr., issued a statement on Jan. 12—the day of Johnson's passing—offering condolences to her family and praising Johnson's commitment to the airport.

Business

Jackson Airport Lawsuit Weakened, But Still On

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The legal fight over who controls the Jackson airport continues outside the courtroom for now after U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves dismissed three of the city of Jackson's initial claims this July.

Business

Director: Airport in Talks with Low-cost Carrier, 91% Fly Out of Jackson

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Minutes after the Mississippi House of Representatives passed the airport "takeover" bill after hours of debate and a Democratic filibuster attempt, Carl Newman traced his fingers across a wall-sized aerial photograph of the airport, speaking with calm confidence about his plans, including continuous, ongoing talks with a new low-cost carrier.

Business

Airport 'Takeover' Bill to Be Filed Early This Week

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Sen. Josh Harkins, R-Flowood, is touching up a bill that proposes to change the Jackson airport commission structure.

Business

Obama Appoints Jackson Airport CEO to National Council

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President Barack Obama will appoint Carl Newman, the CEO of the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority, to the National Infrastructure Advisory Council.

City & County

Fight for Jackson Airport: City, JMAA Join Stallworth's Lawsuit Against State

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The City of Jackson and the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority announced Thursday afternoon that they would be filing a joint motion to intervene in the ongoing lawsuit filed by former JMAA commissioner Jeffrey Stallworth in the latest stage of the fight over Jackson's airport.

City & County

Jackson Airport Fate Left to Courts After Feds Alter Policy

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The Federal Aviation Administration, through policy changes, has side-stepped its role in the battle for the Jackson municipal airport, leaving the decision up to a federal court instead.

City & County

JMAA Says Republicans Want to Control Contracts, Rallies Public Against ‘Takeover’ Bill

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Warning that the airport “takeover” is about money and control of contracts, members of the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority and its supporters gathered today in the echoing rotunda of the Mississippi Capitol to voice their opposition to the still-pending Senate Bill 2162.

Business

National Airport Board Names Jackson's Carl Newman Chairman

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The executive director of Jackson's airport now chairs the largest association of accredited airport professionals in the world.

City & County

Airport ‘Takeover’ Bill Leaves 'Toxic Climate' of Legislature, Headed to Governor’s Desk

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The Jackson airport “takeover” bill is en route to the governor’s desk after the Mississippi Senate tabled the motion to reconsider on Senate Bill 2162 this morning.

Business

Stallworth's Airport Suit May Not Have Standing, Harkins Says 'A Reach'

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Former Jackson Municipal Airport Authority Commissioner Jeffery Stallworth's lawsuit challenging the impending "takeover" may not have legal standing or support from the other interested parties involved, including the current JMAA board.

Business

Jackson Airport CEO Newman Outlines Plans for Hotel, Low-Cost Carrier

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The airport's chief executive officer, during an interview at the airport on March 24 just as the Mississippi House was passing its controversial "takeover" bill of the facility, outlined a five-year plan that centered on several development and growth priorities.

Business

Charlotte, Baton Rouge Airports Lessons for Jackson’s ‘Takeover’

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The Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport is not the only municipal air-traffic hub looking down the barrel of a state-sanctioned reorganization of its governing board.

Business

Dems Promise Retribution, Evoke Slavery in ‘Hijacked Airport’ House Debate

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The black and Democratic caucuses did not pull punches in testimony against the Jackson airport "takeover" bill that passed the Mississippi House March 24, including attempts to modify the legislation with eight amendments that all failed.

Business

Legislature Moves to Control All Sales of Jackson Airport Land

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The Mississippi Legislature would control the sale of all Jackson airport land under changes the Senate approved today.

Politics

Side-by-Side Donations: Key Players in Jackson Airport ‘Takeover’ Debate

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Sen. Josh Harkins, R-Flowood, and Sen. John Horhn, D-Jackson—airport "takeover" adversaries—both received campaign donations from several of the same PACs and businesses.

Publisher's Note

Is the 'Airport Takeover' All About ... A Road?

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As the airport "takeover" bill wends its way through the Mississippi Legislature, it's becoming a little more clear that the point of the bill is not to improve airport services as much as it might be designed to grease the wheels of Rankin County development.

Business

Jackson Airport 'Takeover' Bill Goes Live in Senate, Would Limit Mayor to One Appointment

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The Republican governor of Mississippi would get strong control of the Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers Airport under the highly anticipated legislation that finally landed this weekend.

Business

Letter: FAA Could Close Jackson Airport During JMAA 'Takeover' Process

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The Mississippi Airports Association is taking the side of the Jackson Airport, warning that the FAA could close it during a protracted legal battle.

City & County

What’s Behind the Airport ‘Takeover’?

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Since the news broke in January that the Senate was about to wage a "hostile takeover" of Jackson's airport, many Jacksonians wonder if it's about more than who controls operations at the airport itself.

Business

Race Clearly Behind Airport ‘Takeover’ Move

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Abolitionist Frederick Douglass once said, "Power concedes nothing without a demand." A cliche proclaims, "There is power in numbers."

Business

City May Annex Airport Land, Collect Rent On It

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Two Jackson City Council members today floated proposals to annex land around the Jackson airport and have the City collect rent on it.

Business

Airport ‘Takeover’: An Ethical Minefield

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The opposition to the Jackson airport "takeover" bill strengthened this week even as a Senate committee passed it to the floor Tuesday despite warnings from state airport leaders that the effort could run afoul of state ethics laws.

The Real Truth About Jackson’s Airports

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Let's talk facts about the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority. First, Jackson's airport system originated in 1928.

Business

Airport Bill Passes After Filibuster, Accusations Against House Speaker

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Despite a massive filibuster, accusations of a deal gone awry and quoting of Bible verses, the Mississippi House of Representatives today passed the controversial airport “takeover” bill today to give more control of the Jackson airport’s commission to stakeholders outside the city.

Business

UPDATED: Airport Bill Passes Senate, Called ‘Hostile Eminent-Domain Takeover'

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More than two hours of debate and six failed amendments later, the Jackson airport “takeover” bill passed the Senate by a vote of 29-18 today, leading critics to slam it as a "hostile eminent-domain taskeover.

Business

The Battle for the Jackson Airport: Can the State Take It Away?

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It's not exactly Tom Cruise's Maverick flipping off a Russian fighter pilot in "Top Gun," but a dogfight is shaping up over control of the Jackson airport.

Business

Lumumba, Residents on Airport Grab: ‘We’re Not Falling For It’

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Upward of 30 Jacksonians, fresh off work, gathered inside the Chokwe Lumumba Center for Economic Democracy and Development Monday night on west Capitol Street to protest an attempt by state Republicans to wrest control of the Jackson airport from City of Jackson officials.

City & County

Unfriendly Skies: Can Jackson Save Its Airport?

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The City of Jackson, which controls the 3,381 acres of land the airport occupies, is bracing for a looming battle for its control with the State of Mississippi.

Politics

High-Speed Chases, Airport Takeover on Council Agenda Tonight

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In the past two weeks, a number of people have made political hay out of Ward 3 Councilman Kenneth Stokes' remark about throwing bottles and bricks at suburban cop cars to stop them from dangerously chasing petty criminal suspects into Jackson.

City & County

Sen. Horhn: Feds Won't Let State Take Airport

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Sen. John Horhn said the Jackson airport’s fate will ultimately rest in the Federal Aviation Administration’s hands, and that’s good news.

Business

Jackson Airport 'Takeover' Bill Passes to Senate Floor, JMAA Gets Award

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The airport "takeover" bill now heads to the Senate floor after the Senate Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency Committee passed Sen. Josh Harkins', R-Flowood, bill to create a nine-member commissioner board to replace the current Jackson airport board.