Newton County residents are experiencing a smoother ride as they head to the courthouse in Decatur, thanks to the recent paving of three streets that surround the building.

    Fourth Street, Fifth Avenue, and Seventh Street are owned by the town of Decatur, but the county agreed to pave them, according to county administrator Steve Seale. The parking lot behind the justice court building also got a facelift, he said.

    “The street between the justice court building and the courthouse looked awful,” he said. “So we decided to work together with the town to improve the streets.”

    Seale said said the project, which entailed milling and paving the streets with asphalt, cost the county about $32,000.

     The work on Seventh Street from the justice court building to Highway 15 and near city hall was paid for by the town, Seale said. City workers were busy striping parking spaces on Fifth Avenue Friday.

    State Rep. Randy Rushing, a Decatur native, said the streets were last paved in the late 1970s. “The last time they paved it, I was about 13 years old,” he said. “It really needed it. The normal life expectancy of asphalt is 12 to 15 years.”

    The road improvements follow a major upgrade of Broad Street, from Highway 15 to the railroad tracks on the west of town, which was paid for with a grant from the Mississippi Department of Transportation and town funds.

    The sidewalks around East Central Community College and near the school’s Baptist Student Union were also recently upgraded. Lights on the school’s campus were also replaced, making the campus safer at night.

    A few years ago, the town used funds from a Community Development Block Grant to repave several streets in low income neighborhoods the west part of town.