Work starts on Jackson County’s Cook Road connector. Will ‘major economic impact’ follow?
State and county leaders broke ground Friday on a $30 million east-west connector road just north of Interstate 10 in St. Martin.
“We think this is going to be a major economic impact for us in Jackson County,” said Jackson County Administrator Brian Fulton.
The 2.6-mile corridor will give drivers an alternate route connecting Cook Road from Mallett Road in D’Iberville to Seaman Road in Latimer.
Gov. Phil Bryant was already predicting big things for the unincorporated communities of St. Martin and Latimer.
“This is the change that they will all look back and say when did Jackson County become Jackson County — it did today,” he said.
Talks on the project began nearly 20 years ago when D’Iberville, in Harrison County, was just beginning to see exponential retail growth north of the I-110 and I-10 interchange.
Bryant compared the planned growth to what’s been seen in Rankin, DeSoto and Madison Counties — all of which saw tax revenues increase in recent years as a result of more commercial development.
Business interest
Jackson County District Four Supervisor Troy Ross told the Sun Herald several companies have expressed interest in the area near the connector road.
“One said ‘why don’t you have asphalt on the ground yet?’ ” Ross said.
Still, the vision is to bring in businesses that will drive traffic.
“We know the interest is there,” Ross said. “It’s a matter of proving we are serious about building it. And, today marks that moment.”
To accommodate the anticipated growth, the West Jackson County Utility District in July 2019 opened an expanded operations facility south of I-10.
Director John Hannah told the Sun Herald gravity-based sewer line extensions are already in place as part of the first phase.
“We’re in full swing trying to stay ahead of the road improvements. And, it’s much more economical for us to do our work prior to the road activities,” Hannah explained.
First TIF bond for a county
The state Legislature earlier this year passed a bill allowing Jackson County to become the first county to get 18.5% of its sales tax back to pay off loans, called tax-increment finance (TIF) bonds, for improvements. Cities already are rebated 18.5%.
There were $8.4 million in federal funds spent beginning in 2007 on preliminary work, from acquiring right-of-ways and environmental assessments, to clearing property and moving utilities.
In addition to the county’s $2.6 million of matching funds, $15 million in RESTORE Act funds from the BP oil spill is are going to construction. The remaining $2 million is being covered by the state.
Puzzle together
Plans engineered by Neel-Schaffer call for two lanes of traffic with bike lanes as well as a boulevard-style median with landscaping and turning lanes.
Holden Construction will complete the first phase from Mallett Road to Victoria Drive. And bids on the second phase ending at Seamen Road will be accepted sometime in 2020.
According to City Manager Clay Jones, the D’Iberville wants to ensure a smooth transition between both counties is part of the overall vision of Cook Road.
He told Sun Herald the city will be moving forward immediately on widening Mallet Road to the intersection of Lamey Bridge and Sangani Boulevard.
“We wanted to make sure that they got their piece of the puzzle put together, got this kicked off, and then, we will start on our end of this corridor,” said Jones.
If all goes as planned, residents and visitors could be driving along the new Cook Road by Fall 2021.
Also on Friday, Jackson County leaders broke ground on a 1,620-square-foot West Jackson County Planning Department building along Mississippi 609. That project is slated to open by fall 2020.