Pleased with community input at a recent public forum concerning the possible closing of Valley Road, the East Mississippi Business Development Corporation has scheduled a second one for later this week.
"After the first meeting, we've got some input from the public that's given us some suggestions that we are going to recommend to the (Lauderdale County) Board of Supervisors," said Skip Skaggs, director of business development for the EMBDC.
"The community is unhappy about the possible closing of the road, but they understand what's at stake here and have made some good suggestions."
According to Skaggs, about 70 residents, as well as elected officials and employees of Lauderdale County and Meridian attended the forum, which was held at the South Lauderdale Volunteer Fire Department.
At issue: For both safety and economic development reasons, Lauderdale County may consider the closure of a portion of Valley Road, between 31st Avenue and Interstate 20/59.
"There is a stretch of Valley Road – just past the Pilot Truck Stop if you're headed south – and Atlas has grown to the point where it's on both sides of the street. It's limited in the direction that it can grow, given railroad tracks and sewerage treatment plant and the terrain," Skaggs explained.
"The traffic is driving too fast through there. The county has, in the past, put up stop signs, flashing lights, 'Watch for Trucks' signs – it has not deterred traffic in any way."
Atlas Roofing Company has asked the EMBDC to mediate between the county and community to discuss the possible closure of Valley Road. The company views the road as a safety concern to their employees, as well as the general public.
"What we're doing is outlining the issues from first, a safety standpoint and secondly, from an economic development standpoint," Skaggs said. "Then we talk about the possible inconvenience the road closure would create as we outline alternate routes."
What makes the road closure an economic development concern starts with CertainTeed, a company that closed the doors to its Meridian manufacturing plant after determining that they had better plants elsewhere in the country.
After the closure, the EMBDC began looking for local plants that could be in danger of the same fate someday – closing because they couldn't keep up with other plants owned by the same company.
Atlas Roofing manufactures roofing products on Valley Road. The 50-year-old company currently employs 215 people in Lauderdale County with an annual payroll of $10.5 million.
Because the company has four other plants manufacturing the same product outside of Mississippi, the EMBDC wants to accommodate the future growth of the Meridian plant, helping to ensure that it does not one day become outdated and risk closure.
Drainage and road conditions were two main issues highlighted at the recent forum.
"There was discussion regarding draining and road conditions, from striping to the condition of the shoulder of the road. Things that the county might be able to make improvements on that would improve the safety conditions," Skaggs said.
There is no timeline as to the final decision of whether or not to close the road portion.
"Initially, we thought we would seek the public input and present it to the Board of Supervisors in November, and let them make a decision in the November/December timeline," Skaggs said.
However, after the productive outcome of the first public meeting, the EMBDC now plans to present some of the suggested recommendations.
"We're going to recommend that the Board of Supervisors try to implement those suggested improvements to see if that helps with the safety issue," Skaggs said.
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