By Rupert Howell
Two days of meetings Monday and Tuesday, by Batesville’s board of mayor and aldermen, revealed a work in progress in preparing for the Polar Express and getting downtown construction completed in a timely fashion before train riders begin to arrive.

Polar Express officials noted much longer trains with extra cars added to fill an immediate need for additional seats following an unexpected number of ticket sales.

The Polar Express train has been lengthened to carry a maximum 938 seats with a third of the trips already at full occupancy and the weekend before Christmas already sold out.
The schedule includes two trips daily with additional trips on weekends.

Board members discussed mobile vendors and locations and allowed Chesley Pratt to locate a food trailer in the alley next to her old service station located on Court Street across from the courthouse. Pratt explained she would be selling hot dogs at the site. The service station is currently undergoing a facelift.

Concerns expressed for Polar Express during Monday’s meeting were orderly boarding and de-boarding of trains as well as traffic entering the Square from Eureka Street.

Parking attendants will be employed by Polar Express to assist visitors with finding parking places and a security service has also been hired.

Asked what the city can do to further assist, the board was told they were already doing a lot of the right things, unifying the community and providing a beautiful backdrop for Polar Express.
During the following day’s meeting held prior to the regular first Tuesday meeting, Police Chief Tony Jones offered an estimate of $41,000 for extra time, including officers’ overtime, that would be expended during the duration of Polar Express’s stay.

“I’m going to present them (Polar Express) with that,” Mayor Jerry Autrey told aldermen.
Gary Howard with the Mississippi Food Truck Association met with the board at the request of alderman Eddie Nabors and stated the association would be willing to work with the city to assure food trucks were present during the Polar Express tenure.

Howard explained that although individual trucks might not want to commit for the duration, members may agree to man the Batesville location at alternate times.

Local food truck owner Jerome Partee was also encouraged to participate. He had come before Batesville’s Planning Commission previously and allowed permission to set up at Panola Plaza.
The city agreed to enter a two-month lease with Jan Williams, owner of the building on the corner of Public Square and Panola Avenue, as a central location for information or for tables for people to sit and eat food from mobile vendors.

Aldermen told a vendor seeking to sell t-shirts on the square during November and December that the board was only authorizing mobile food vendors.