City, county joint road project in the works

By By Fredie Carmichael / staff writer
Jan. 12, 2004
Meridian and Lauderdale County officials could once again join forces to complete a project inside the city limits.
Eddie Harper, newly-installed as District 1 supervisor and vice president of the board of supervisors, said today he's working on a project in which the county and city would cooperate to add lanes to the congested city intersection of North Hills Street and Highway 39.
At a meeting of the Lauderdale County Council of Governments, Harper said the preliminary plans include county workers using equipment and manpower to add one or two lanes to North Hills Street from 10th Avenue to Highway 39. The money, estimated at about $700,000, would come from $6 million that was borrowed by the city in August but has yet to be used.
Harper's announcement came days after the Meridian City Council signed an agreement to work with Lauderdale County to jointly demolish more than 50 condemned homes inside the city.
The agreement was sent to the state attorney general's office for final approval.
The agreement calls for the city to fund the project, the county to do the work and Waste Management to dispose of the debris at no cost.
Harper said he hopes the county continues to work with the city on projects in the future. The county is currently considering borrowing up to $4 million to pave and repair streets in the county.
Harper said if that loan is approved, he hopes the county will use some of that money to pave city streets.
Meanwhile, Ward 1 Councilman George Thomas said the council is expected to approve its final list of streets to be paved with their $6 million loan at their next meeting.
Once the list is approved, work is expected to begin in the spring. Until then, councilmen are continuing to pay 3.76 percent interest on the loan while the money sits idle in the bank.