I’ve been faithfully saving news links of interest but have been short on time to gather them in a coherent post so today I’ll throw several out for your reading pleasure.
First off is the historic Grass Lawn property and movement in the rebuilding process. Ryan LaFontaine filed the story for the Sun Herald:
City Hall is searching for a construction company to build a detailed replica of the historic Grass Lawn mansion.
The antebellum home, built in 1836, meant so much to Gulfport that the old house had its own place on the city’s official seal.
Hurricane Katrina wrecked the mansion in 2005, washing away more than a century’s worth of history. Last week, the council authorized City Hall to solicit construction bids.
The city already has insurance and FEMA money to rebuild Grass Lawn, and earlier this year, the City Council voted unanimously to award a design contract to architect Frank Genzer.
Then in April, the council voted against accepting a $500,000 grant from the state Department of Archives and History to help rebuild the mansion. But two weeks later, after several days of what some council members considered unfair media scrutiny, the council voted 6-1 to accept the money. Continue reading “Around the GO Zone in 60 Seconds: Catching Up Edition”