The Mississippi State University Student Association has proposed a closer relationship with the Starkville Board of Alderman and the mayor.
“We want students to be able to have an official say and consideration in the board’s proceedings,” Student Association President Jon David Cole said.
In a written letter, the organization asked that its members obtain a representative position for the aldermen.
“One or two of us will represent each alderman,” governmental affairs representative Stephen Horn said. “Dan Camp wants two or three.”
Horn said more than half of Starkville is made up of college students, and the new city officers have been more adaptive to their needs than the former ones.
“We as a student body need to voice our concerns to these guys,” he said, adding that the aldermen also need to voice their concerns to him.
“I’m glad that the SA has taken an interest in local government and proposed closer communication,” Ward 4 Alderman and MSU student Richard Corey said. “Some of Starkville’s biggest events are a product of open dialogue between the SA and our city government.”
The city government pays for police protection so students in charge of Bulldog Bash, a music festival that takes place each fall in the Cotton District, will be able to use their own money to ensure a beneficial experience, Corey said.
One of the SA’s primary goals is to ensure economic growth in Starkville, Horn said.
“There have been franchises not wanting to come to town because Starkville wasn’t growing,” he said. “But with Camp in office, growth has been and will be promoted.”
Since Camp’s election there has been the possibility of Chili’s, a restaurant franchise, opening in Starkville, Horn said. “This type of expansion will only benefit the students.”
The Student Association will be placed on the agenda for the Board of Aldermen’s Sept. 20 meeting, which will begin at 5:30 p.m. Before the meeting, the SA must prepare a presentation outlining the reasons and goals for the proposal.
“If this goes through, we will meet with the aldermen biweekly and have dinner one night a week,” Horn said.
“We’ve talked to Camp and four aldermen and got positive feedback,” Horn said, adding that the proposal was a huge step.
“We’ve been working on this since March, when they began running for office.” Horn added.
SA community relations committee head Lori Holland, a sophomore majoring in political science.
said she wants students “in the know” about the board’s decisions.
“Richard Corey is the alderman for Ward 4 and is obviously doing an awesome job,” she said. “But Ward 4 only represents the students who live in that area, not as a whole.”
The students and the campus are so intertwined that students need a say, especially in what affects campus, she said.
Though Corey said he expects advantageous results from the representative relationship between the SA and the Board of Aldermen, he said the aldermen and the mayor are in office to hear the concerns of every citizen.
“Anyone who has an issue they want to confront can come talk to us,” he said. “Our board meetings are open to the public.”
Corey posts his goals, his concerns and the results of Board of Aldermen meetings on his blog at rcorey.blogspot.com.
Holland said she’s confident about the outcome. “I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t go through,” she said.
Horn said that in the past there had been a missing synergy between the college and the town. “But the new office is much more aware of the university,” he said. “We want to ensure that awareness.”