A letter obtained by The Grenada Star from a City of Grenada official has been the topic of contention between the Council for several weeks.
The letter – penned by City Manager Stanford Amos – was recently sent to officials with a Fortune 500 company, which met with the City Council during its regular meeting on Monday, July 11, 2022, to discuss their desires to expand the household name brand company to Grenada. The potential impact for the city included millions of dollars in improvements, renovations and expansions to the city-owned facility located at 823 Air Industrial Park Rd., in the city’s Industrial Park, as well as the hiring of up to 300 employees at its peak.
Greater Grenada Partnership Executive Director Matthew Harrison met with the City Council during official monthly meetings – seven to be precise – as well as one-on-one with Amos and Councilmen to discuss how the industrial development organization could assist them in recruiting manufacturing prospects to fill city-owned buildings. The Fortune 500 prospect was the topic of many of these conversations, however, after several executive session discussions, no progress was made.
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Following more than a year of presentations from Harrison requesting financial support from the city and detailing the Fortune 500 company’s intentions, another prospect, Pillar, LLC., began showing interest in the city-owned building. Once again, executive session was held to discuss plans.
Then the letter typed on City of Grenada letterhead featuring its seal was sent.
A third company, MS Freight Co., showed interest in August.
The letter read as follows. The company’s name as well as employee names have been omitted at its request.
Dear <Omitted>
The City of Grenada would like to extend our sincere gratitude to you and <Omitted> for your presentation at our July 11th Council meeting, regarding occupying our facility at 823 Air Industrial Park Rd. We have had tremendous respect for <Omitted> and the impact it has had on the City of <Omitted> and the surrounding area for years. To consider establishing a portion of your operation in the City of Grenada is an honor that we are grateful for and eager to work toward accommodating!
In your presentation and in the subsequent emails sent prior to the meeting addressed to me, the Councilmen and others, it was indicated that we would be working through Matthew Harrison, as <Omitted> representative. As was a matter of discussion with you in the meeting, we have explored several potential opportunities to establish a working relationship with Matthew. From these explorations, we have been unable to establish the trust necessary to have a successful relationship with him.
As I stated, we are grateful for the opportunity to work with <Omitted> to move forward with developing a sustaining relationship with you; however, we cannot do so if we have to work through Mr. Harrison. I hope that you are able to continue moving forward with your plans to locate in the City of Grenada with this disclosure being considered. Please reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns you would like to address.
Thank you again for considering Grenada for such an awesome opportunity. I look forward to hearing from you! We wish you continued success in this and all future endeavors.
Warmest regards,
<Signature>
Stanford Amos,
City Manager, Grenada, MS
Mayor Billy Collins was asked about the letter after an FY2023 budget work session last Tuesday at City Hall and he confirmed that the letter was sent by Amos. He added that Amos was asked by the council to contact the Fortune 500 company to setup a meeting, but never to write or send a letter.
“He sent the letter rather than setting up a meeting,” Collins concluded. “Print it.”
Harrison declined to comment citing his continual efforts to bring leadership together to support economic development efforts.
As for the Fortune 500 prospect, Grenada is no longer being considered as a home for its new location. The 180,000-square-foot building was leased to Pillar, LLC., during a special-called meeting last Thursday after a 6-1 vote.
