A grant worth over $5 million will be distributed to eight counties in rural areas across the state.
U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith explained that the $5.4 million investment in rural Mississippi communities by the U.S Department of Agriculture will help provide unmet infrastructure, business development, and equipment needs.
USDA Rural Development has approved a series of 11 grants worth more than $5.4 million for projects in eight counties, including Grenada, Itawamba, Monroe, Prentiss, Tallahatchie, Union, Webster, and Yalobusha. The grant awards range in scope from water and waste disposal grants/loans to economic impact initiative grants.
“USDA Rural Development is responsible for helping rural counties and small communities provide public services and foster economic growth. Often these investments help fill gaps that are hard to overcome with a rural tax base,” Hyde-Smith said. “Since taking over Rural Development for Mississippi, State Director John Rounsaville has illustrated strong leadership and made significant progress toward rebuilding our infrastructure and boosting rural business.”
The two largest awards are Water and Waste Disposal Loans and Grants. They include:
- Cason Water District, Monroe County – $2.1 million loan and $1.94 million grant to correct water deficiencies through a $4.3 million project involving a booster station, elevated storage tank, and surface water transmission lines from the Northeast Mississippi Water Supply District. The project will improve water service to more than 1,600 customers in the Cason district and allow for growth.
- Ingomar Water Association, Union County – $903,000 loan to reduce water loss by replacing 40-year-old water meters with radio-read meters. The funding will also allow the association, which serves more than 900 customers, to replace some undersized distribution lines and extend its service area.
USDA Rural Development also approved the following grants for Mississippi:
Rural Business Development Grants ($255,585)
- $96,000 – Tallahatchie County Board of Supervisors
- $85,900 – Grenada County Board of Supervisors
- $41,300 – City of Water Valley
- $32,385 – City of Water Valley
Community Facilities Grants ($102,524)
- $49,124 – City of Baldwyn
- $35,400 – Town of Myrtle
- $18,000 – City of Eupora
Economic Impact Initiative Grants ($67,800)
- $46,800 – City of Fulton
- $21,000 – City of Eupora
