Resident says city wrongly refiled cleanup lien; board agrees to review

Daniel Jackson told the board that he and his brother purchased 642 Cherry Street in 2021 and later discovered cleanup charges and a lien the city filed in 2017. Jackson said the house that had stood on the lot was torn down in 2017 and that the city never posted the cleanup charge on public records at the time; when he went to pay taxes he was told the city now listed nearly $8,000 in cleanup costs on the account. "We purchased the property ... and when I went to pay the taxes ... it's another — you owe almost $8,000 on this property," Jackson said, describing attempts to resolve the matter with prior counsel and with the bank.

Jackson told the board he had paid '21 taxes and that he believes the city 'botched' the cleanup process, saying the city filed a lien in 2017 but took no action until a 2022 refiling; he cited Mississippi Code §21-19-11 (as referenced in his remarks) and asked the board to withdraw the tax and cleanup charge. "They filed the lien pending in '7 in 2017 for it, but never did anything," Jackson said, and added that the 2022 refiling created a problem for property owners who bought in good faith.

City staff acknowledged Jackson's complaint and asked him to provide documentation; the board directed staff and legal counsel to review the records and to have the city attorney respond. The clerk said the audit and records check were underway and the attorney indicated he would follow up; the board agreed to put the matter on an agenda item for additional review if necessary.

What happens next: the board told Jackson staff and counsel would review the records and follow up with him in the first week of August. The city did not take immediate action to withdraw the charge at the meeting.