FERRIDAY — It’s just a street name, but it’s more than just a street name — that was the message Ferriday residents delivered to the board of aldermen Tuesday night.

During a public hearing about the renaming of Morning Star Alley to the Rev. Johnny Hollins Alley, those in favor and those opposed to the name change spoke out passionately against the measure, proposed by Alderman Elijah “Steppers” Banks.

The son of the late Hollins, the Rev. Michael Hollins, thanked the town for its desire to honor his father and said he respected the rights of those who opposed the measure.

“There was nothing more important to our father than the town of Ferriday and the churches he pastored and the people he served,” Michael Hollins said. “The only thing he desired in life was to be a servant to this community.”

Resident Emmaline Crum, who was born and raised on Morning Star Alley, said she was opposed to the change because people would have to go through the hassles of changing their address information at their various places of business and because a church on the alley shares its name.

“Everyone knows that New Morning Star Church is on Morning Star Alley,” she said. “I’m not disrespecting their desire to have something named after Rev. Hollins, but don’t take New Morning Star Alley.”

Several residents suggested naming other streets after Hollins or compromising by building a memorial to him in that area.

Alderman Gloria Lloyd said that she did not believe that 10 children at Ferriday High School would be able to tell who E.E. Wallace — the former city official for whom the town’s main street was renamed — was, but that 50 FHS students would be able to tell who Hollins was.

“We need to start giving black men their props and stop black people bringing the black people down,” Lloyd said.

The board ultimately voted 2-0 to rename the alley, with Banks and Lloyd voting favor of it.

Alderman Somer Lance abstained from the vote.

Aldermen Johnnie Brown and Jerome Harris were not present for medical reasons.

The board also heard a complaint from Lancaster-area resident Henry Boxley about sewage that has been backing up.

“It is to a point now that the odors are so bad when it warms up you can’t stand it,” he said.

At times, the stench gets so bad that Boxley said he has to send his elderly mother to his sister’s house.

“Sewage is in the ditch in the front yard,” he said. “Kids play in it. They have their toys in it. Ferriday is better than this.”

Mayor Glen McGlothin said the town has engaged a company to come in and find the problem with the sewage line.

McGlothin said he believes there is a broken line somewhere and that the town will have to start diverting sewage to another lift station, but the town will have to get some major funding to fix the aging sewer lines.

“We are talking about $1 million in the long run,” he said.

In other news:

4The board discussed ongoing efforts to have condemned houses torn down.

The biggest problem the town has encountered has been that landowners have refused to accept official notice from the town, effectively grinding the legal process to a halt, McGlothin said.

At least one person at the meeting, however, knew one of the landowners, and the Rev. Justin Conner called the owner and put him on speakerphone on his cellular phone.

McGlothin told the landowner to come to town to discuss the matter.

4The board voted to pay $450 to the Ridgecrest Volunteer Fire Department.

The Ridgecrest department recently had to move and upgrade their radio tower, and Ferriday Fire Chief Joe Sontoyo said that the Ridgecrest department asked for the money because Ferriday has used the Ridgecrest radio frequency since the mid-1990s.

Even though the board ultimately approved the measure, McGlothin said the town should start looking into getting its own radio tower.