This Issue
May brought the largest River Jamboree in the event's 40-plus year history, marking Moss Point's 125th anniversary at the confluence of the Pascagoula and Escatawpa rivers. Inside: a recap of the celebration, every department's update, and what's ahead in June.
It is no small thing to look out at a riverfront full of your neighbors on a Friday night in May and realize you are watching one hundred and twenty-five years of a city celebrating itself. River Jamboree 2026 was the largest in the event's four-decade history. Two days. Two rivers meeting at our doorstep. Two milestones, ours and the nation's, woven together along the same waterfront our city was incorporated on in 1901.
Behind that visible celebration, our departments did the work that does not make the front page. Public Works restored water on Eastwood Drive when a main broke. Our Water and Sewer team continued the work of accurate billing and leak detection that protects every household. Chief Stevenson and the Police Department kept the riverfront safe across two long festival days and built on the community engagement work we started this spring. Our Fire Department continued the smoke detector initiative with the Red Cross. Catori Pollard and Parks & Recreation closed out the first full season at the rebuilt Gautier Street Ballpark. Latanya Wilson and Community Development kept the River City Flood Ready Initiative moving and the Five-Year Consolidated Plan on course.
None of that gets a banner across City Hall. All of it matters more than what does. The Monthly Current exists to make sure you can see it.
The closing weekend of May brings Sand Jam at Pascagoula Beach and Wake the Dog at the Downtown Riverfront. Into June, the Boys & Girls Club Summer Program opens on the first. City Council meets on the second and again on the sixteenth at City Hall, both open to the public. The Moss Point School District wraps the school year on the third. The Summer Library Program kicks off at the Ina Thompson Library on the eleventh and runs through July 3rd. The Souls 40 Coalition 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament closes the month at Calvin Shallowater Park.
June is the bridge between the celebration we just had and the work that gets us to year one hundred and twenty-six. We will keep showing up.
Lead Feature · River Jamboree 2026
For the first time in its history, River Jamboree expanded to a two-day celebration, doubling as Moss Point's 125th anniversary and a Gulf Coast tribute to America's Semiquincentennial.
River Jamboree 2026 took over Downtown Riverfront Park on Thursday, May 1st and Friday, May 2nd. This year's theme, "It's a Celebration," carried two meanings at once. The City of Moss Point turned one hundred and twenty-five years old. The nation reached its 250th. Both stories met along the waterfront where the Pascagoula and Escatawpa converge, the same junction where Moss Point was incorporated in 1901.
The expanded schedule made room for the legendary Trash Pot Cookoff, free pontoon boat rides, the kids zone, a senior zone, the car expo, live entertainment from Gulf Coast artists, and dozens of local vendors and food trucks. The biggest addition this year was the inaugural Moss Point Idol Competition, a hometown stage built in the same week our own Daniel Stallworth, a Moss Point music teacher, advanced to the Top 20 on American Idol.
Two days, two rivers, one community. Mark the calendar for River Jamboree 2027.
From Chief Dennis Stevenson
May Summary
2026
The Moss Point Police Department closed out a busy May with zero serious incidents across two full days of River Jamboree on May 1st and 2nd. Officers worked the riverfront alongside Parks and Recreation, Fire, and Public Works to keep the largest celebration in the city's history safe for residents and visitors alike.
Beyond Jamboree, we continued the community engagement work that began with our March Meet and Greet at City Hall and Operation Safe Streets at the riverfront in April. Building trust through visible, consistent presence is the standard we are holding the department to.
Residents who want to engage directly with the department or request an officer at a neighborhood event can reach our office at (228) 475-1711 or through cityofmosspoint.org/police.
From the office of the Fire Chief
May Summary
2026
Moss Point Fire responded to 96 calls in May, including twelve emergency medical assists in support of AAA Ambulance Service and an active festival presence at River Jamboree across both days. Average response time across all calls held at 4 minutes 38 seconds.
Our Sound the Alarm partnership with the American Red Cross continued through the month. We installed and tested smoke detectors in homes across all five wards at no cost to residents. Residents who still need a detector installed can request one through our office at (228) 475-1300. Working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in a home fire roughly in half. We will keep installing them as long as residents keep asking.
From the Public Works Department
May Summary
2026
Public Works crews completed the Eastwood Drive water main repair carried over from April. Service was fully restored to all affected households within the working window, and follow-up flushing in the days after kept the line clean. We thank the residents of Eastwood Drive for their patience during the work.
The Lift Station 19 Rehabilitation and Sewer Improvements project, advertised for bid earlier this year, moved into the contractor-selection phase in May. Lift stations are the unseen backbone of a sewer system. Replacing aging pumps and controls now is what keeps us out of emergency repair territory later. Updates as work begins on site.
From the Utility Department
May Summary
2026
Our treatment plant processed 2.4 million gallons of water for Moss Point residents and businesses in May, all of it meeting or exceeding state and EPA standards. No boil-water advisories were issued during the month.
The work the Mayor has been talking about on The River City Chat continued in May: replacing aging water meters, identifying leaks before they reach a customer's bill, and making sure every household pays for the water they actually use and nothing more. This is unglamorous, multi-year work. It is also how a city rebuilds trust in its utility one household at a time.
Residents with a question about a bill or a suspected leak can reach the Utility Department at (228) 475-0300. The first thing to do if you suspect a leak is to read your meter, wait two hours without using water, and read it again. If the number changed, call us. We will help track it down.
From Athletic Director Catori Pollard and the Parks & Rec team
May Summary
2026
The busiest month our department has ever had. River Jamboree took over the Downtown Riverfront for two days, the Trash Pot Cookoff drew the crowd it always does, the inaugural Moss Point Idol Competition lit up the main stage, and we kept the schedule running across both days without a missed beat. The expanded format is here to stay.
At Gautier Street Ballpark, Peewee Baseball wrapped its first full season on the rebuilt field. The transformation that happened back in February with the Biloxi Shuckers, Home of Grace, Cannon Nissan, Ski Heating & AC, Pep Street Wings, and Turf Masters set the stage. The kids and the families that filled the stands made it real. Improvements that carried into May:
Special Olympics Mississippi Area 12 Track and Field Games returned to Jerry Alexander Stadium earlier this spring. We were proud to host. Plans for summer programs at the Library and the riverfront are firming up now. Watch cityofmosspoint.org/parks and The Monthly Current for details as they release.
From Latanya Wilson, Director of Community Development
May Summary
2026
The River City Flood Ready Initiative kept moving in May. The rain garden and drainage system installed near Kreole Elementary School performed through the heavy rains earlier this spring, holding water on site and keeping a normally-flooded stretch of street clear. Our long-term science partnership with the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve continues to shape that work, alongside Mississippi Alabama Sea Grant, the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Indiana University, and Mississippi State University Extension.
The neighborhood-scale stormwater park north of Rose Drive remains in active design. That neighborhood has lived with persistent flooding for years. The park is built to capture and slow stormwater before it reaches the streets and homes that have borne the worst of it.
Our Five-Year Consolidated Plan keeps four priorities at the top of the list: housing rehabilitation, new affordable housing, sanitary sewer, and drainage. The 2024 Annual Action Plan continues as the current operating document for those investments. We also continue coordinating with state partners on the Mississippi Housing Recovery Program for residents still rebuilding after prior storms.
By the Numbers
The work of the city, reported plainly.
Looking Ahead
Public events, milestones, and community activities. Pulled from calendar.cityofmosspoint.org.
Pascagoula Beach
Downtown Riverfront · Two-day event
Summer program runs through June
City Hall · 4320 McInnis Ave. · Open to the public
Moss Point School District · Citywide
Ina Thompson Library · 4119 Bellview Ave. · Through July 3
City Hall · 4320 McInnis Ave. · Open to the public
Calvin Shallowater Park · Pascagoula St.
From City Hall to your front porch.
City Hall
4320 McInnis Avenue
Moss Point, MS 39563
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The Monthly Current · Published monthly by the City of Moss Point, Mississippi.
Print edition formatted for 8.5 x 11 portrait. Web edition at themonthlycurrent.experiencedresults.com.
Issue 03 · May 2026 · City founded 1901 · 125 years on the rivers.