GREENVILLE, Miss. (WJTV) - Greenville leaders are not just asking for increased state investments to lay the groundwork for economic development. They're asking for more money to utilize what's already in the city.
Bordering the Mississippi River, Greenville has long been the economic hub of the Mississippi Delta, and they've been utilizing the Greenville Port for decades.
“It actually serves a three-state region where businesses operate. Greenville is fortunate in that it is a transportation hub," said Tommy Hart, director of the Greenville Port. "You have the connecting point of rail, truck and water. First you have to have manpower, and second you have to have highly competitive transportation costs. We have that. Transportation advantages are great for certain types of industry.”
Those industries are usually agriculture-based, but Greenville's existing infrastructure gives them a broad range of business to consider.
“You’re looking for someone who needs immediate port access. You’re looking for someone who needs to do a lot of landings and takeoffs at an airport that’s not going to be commercially busy, such as Memphis or Jackson. So, we have our assets here. It's mainly around putting those forwards with the state and the public utilities to go after the companies who are interested in those assets," explained Justin Burch, executive director of the Washington County Economic Alliance.
The Mid-Delta Regional Airport, formerly known as Greenville Air Force Base, offers one departing flight a day into Dallas, Texas. It's a commercially slow airport that also offers up state of the art hangars and plenty of open space for potential development.
“Greenville has a rich history of economic development and business industry, and this airport proves that. When you have over 800 acres available, why economic development couldn't fit here? Why couldn't we recruit some business to be here on just this sight alone?” questioned State Rep. John Hines (D-District 50).
As the Delta continues to look for its perfect fit, economic leaders are making sure to take the Delta workforce into account.
“We are really looking towards a new era where we think through holistically, not only how we service industries, but how we service the people that are going to work for those industries. And these are the wages that we want them to make. These are the benefits we want them to have. This is the quality of life that we want them to have," said Burch.
James Johnson, the maintenance supervisor for the Mid-Delta Regional Airport, hopes to reap the benefits of that approach soon. The labor-intensive job has put Johnson in the hospital multiple times, and he's undergone numerous surgeries on his arms and shoulders.
“Now, I can only do so much. I usually drive the tractors, and they’ll call me in, the air conditioner stops. Now, I gotta come off the airfield and go work on the air conditioning. It’s a lot. It’s a lot. I’ve hurt myself so much, you know, and I’m getting older. I just... I just need to do something different," he said.
Two days after our interview, Johnson started a sales position at Baker Distributing in Greenville, which offers him higher pay, better benefits and more time with his family.
“I like playing with my little daughter, I took her to the skating rink yesterday. I keep on out here tearing up everything, my wife going to have to take her. I enjoy, you know, spending time with my family, and I don’t want to be laid up crippled and all that. My family means more to me," Johnson said.