JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – Unincorporated property along Springridge Road and Jackson-Raymond Road in Hinds County could soon be part of the capital city.
Tuesday, the Jackson City Council hired Carroll Warren & Parker, PLLC to represent the city in its latest annexation bid.
The contract is not to exceed $170,000 and will allow the firm to provide legal services from November 9, 2021, to November 8, 2023.
Voting in favor of the measure were Council President Virgi Lindsay, and members Vernon Hartley, Angelique Lee, Brian Grizzell, and Kenneth Stokes.
Council members Ashby Foote and Aaron Banks were absent.
Meanwhile, the council is expected to vote on November 23 on an ordinance “expanding, extending and defining the corporate limits and boundaries of the city” and to provide municipal services within those areas.
According to city documents, the annexation would expand the city’s current boundaries, which were put in place in 2007. It would take in the property along McFarland Road, Springridge Road, and Jackson-Raymond Road.
The parkway will run 18 miles and connect I-55 in Bryam to I-20 at Bolton-Norrell Road in Clinton. The parkway will eventually shorten travel time between Byram and Clinton and open up potentially thousands of acres for economic development.
In 2012, then Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. voiced opposition for funding the project, saying that the parkway’s route at the time “does not include any part of Jackson. We believe any proposed parkway in Hinds County should also include Jackson so that our citizens can reap the economic impact a project of this magnitude would generate.”
Once completed, the parkway will feature a four-lane roadway with a divided 24-foot-wide raised median with curb and gutter, according to Waggoner Engineering’s website.
A map of the parkway found on the Hinds County website is shown below.
It was not known how many square miles or acres the city is planning to take in, nor is it known how many homes and businesses would be affected.
The city would not comment on the annexation, saying the matter was in litigation, and Interim Director of Communications Ashley McLaughin said WLBT would have to file an open record request to obtain a map of the proposed property.
The item was mentioned at the Tuesday council meeting, but Council President Virgi Lindsay said if any further discussion was needed, the council would have to go into an executive session.
A copy of the agenda packet is below. Information on the annexation begins on page 56.
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