Issues surrounding the planned George M. Bryan Airport runway expansion project could negate the construction of an access road in a proposed industrial park south of the area, thereby eliminating one of three industrial park options.
Golden Triangle Development LINK Chief Operating Officer Joey Deason said his organization will advise city aldermen and county supervisors not to pursue the proposed 16th section industrial park option if an access road from the proposed site to Highway 25 cannot be constructed.
The city and Federal Aviation Administration previously authorized the runway extension, said Airport Manager Rodney Lincoln, and such a project would also extend the runway protection zone. An access road serving as a major transportation corridor for industry, he said, would violate provisions of the protection zone.
“The airport board approved it; aldermen approved it; the FAA approved it,” Lincoln said. “It’s in the works, and it’s just a matter of when the money is coming. We have first rights to the project.”
Deason said he is awaiting a letter from the FAA and airport board to spell out the protection zone’s rules, regulations and limitations. Once it’s received, the LINK will vet the information and determine if the access road’s construction can still move forward at that location.
Supervisors previously dedicated $7 million toward economic development and chose a different park – land north of the Highway 25-Highway 82 bypass – as its preferred industrial park option. Aldermen, who will be asked to financially partner with supervisors, have yet to select which one of three industrial park options they want to pursue.
City leaders are expected to broach the issue May 17, but Deason said the LINK could pull the proposal if it is determined a connecting road cannot be constructed.
The issue with the access road could become moot if aldermen back the same plan approved by the county.
“We have to be 100 percent sure before we move forward,” Deason said. “I don’t want to put anyone in position to pay back money or do something in the future that’s going to deter future growth. We need to understand the rules and regulations in regard to entry and exit in the pathway.”
A Highway 25 connection was proposed not only to bring industrial traffic to the proposed park, but also to alleviate traffic issues caused by heavy trucks on Highway 12 that serve existing industry along Airport Road.
“Part of the value (of an access road) is that it takes all of that traffic to (Gulf States) and Southwire and takes it away from that busy intersection. Adding more traffic to an already congested Highway 12 makes no sense at an already dangerous intersection,” Deason said. “We just don’t know how traffic will be on Highway 12 after (Mississippi Department of Transportation’s plans to construct medians along Highway 12).”
Supervisors voted 4-0 to support the LINK’s first industrial park option – almost 400 acres referred to as the Strange, Stanley and Waldrop properties.
A LINK presentation in March to city and county stakeholders showed the area could develop 13 individual lots combining for 192 acres, a 28.3-acre site for a proposed speculative building, a 6-acre site for a 4-County Electric Power Association substation and a 157.3-acre parcel for future expansion.
The project’s estimated $30 million price tag includes $14 in commitments from the city and county, an additional source of funding from Starkville Utilities and outside costs for infrastructure improvements. While an estimated $10 million is needed to extend pipes and solve the area’s lack of natural gas infrastructure, LINK Chief Executive Officer Joe Max Higgins previously said 4-County has committed to a $4 million, 60-megawatt investment at the location.
The second option would have the city and county invest about $6 million for Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District land south of the airport.
A third option – investing $225,000 to clear trees and grub unoccupied parcels at Cornerstone Park – could be coupled with either plan by supervisors.
While city officials previously showed favor of supporting both the second and third options, Mayor Parker Wiseman said the 16th section plan “presents the best and most cost effective path forward.”
“The important thing is to make an investment in attracting good jobs that pay good wages to this community. We simply cannot afford to do nothing,” he said.
George M. Bryan Airport handles small aircraft and offers no commercial flights. Mississippi State University’s Raspet Flight Research Laboratory is located at the airfield.
Carl Smith covers Starkville and Oktibbeha County for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter @StarkDispatch
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.