By Staff
Sept. 15, 2002
Gov. Ronnie Musgrove and the town of Marion have done what some other folks around here have been talking about for months.
Shortly after he spoke to East Mississippi Business Development Corp. members last Tuesday, Musgrove drove a few miles over to Marion, where he presented a $250,000 grant for extending water service to Lauderdale County's new industrial park. Musgrove then took a personal tour of the property and reportedly was impressed with its possibilities.
The money is a tangible sign that the industrial park, known locally as the Malone Ranch property, is really going to develop. This water project money will flow through the town of Marion, not the city of Meridian which is ultimately obligated to provide the service.
With the money Musgrove delivered from a discretionary fund over which he has authority, work can begin very soon to get the water project under way. The water system this grant will help build will, in turn, help attract industrial prospects. It is a temporary fix, to be sure, but the system then will remain in place permanently as a backup.
This is water service to the industrial park for which the city of Meridian and Lauderdale County officials, after considerable bickering, have jointly applied for a federal grant. The grant has been pre-approved by the U.S. Economic Development Administration and, from all indications, may be formally approved later this year.
While many East Mississippians differ with Musgrove on any number of issues, we should appreciate his response to the need to get water service to the Interstate20/59 industrial park as soon as possible.