Steve Loper said he’s run out of patience with whoever keeps stealing palms, flowers and other plants from medians on south Market Street in Pascagoula.

So much so that Loper, through his business, Simply Grown Lawn & Landscape Inc., is offering a $100 reward for information that leads to the arrest of the culprit or culprits.

Loper, as well as the owners of Bumblebee Landscaping and Turf Masters, have assisted Pascagoula Pride and others in restoring the six southernmost medians leading from the Pascagoula Beach, which were the hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina.

But, as soon as palms, crepe myrtle, ornamental grasses, roses and other flowers, trees or plants are planted — either for seasonal changes or to replace the ones that are being stolen — Loper said the fresh batches are stolen again.

“We’re spending lots of labor, money and time on this project, and we’ve got people snatching things out, almost on a daily basis,” Loper said.

The project began last summer, when Pascagoula Pride got help from the local landscapers to replenish the six medians.

“It’s a total disregard for what we’re trying to improve,” Loper said of the thefts, which have cost the businesses and civic groups hundreds of dollars in lost merchandise.

Pascagoula Landscape Design Manager Kevin Hall said that similar thefts have been going on for years, including in the downtown area.

The thieves’ favorite targets are the Sago palms, which cost about $40 each.

City officials believe the thefts occur at nights and on the weekends when Pascagoula is quiet and not filled with the 50,000 daily visitors it has during the regular work week.

“They take a little here, a little here and it adds up,” Hall said. “They kind of help themselves.”

Hall said he empathizes with landscapers and city volunteers who work on the planting, only to see it have to be done again.

“It’s frustrating because we see all of them working so hard to improve our city and they’re giving of themselves,” Hall said.

A similar project was initiated by a group of Beach Elementary parents who planted flowers and trees at the school — located in the same area of the medians — to add beauty there despite the school still being closed.

The thieves should be ashamed of their actions, Loper said.

“We just don’t need people like that in this city, not when we’re trying to rebuild and add a little something back,” he said.

Reporter Brad Crocker can be reached at bcrocker@themississippipress.com or (228) 934-1431.

source : www.chicagotribune.com