Concrete and a few signs don’t sound like much, but for Natchez’s sense of community, the combination has been amazing.

The Natchez Trails project began several years ago as a dream of improving the existing walkway on the Natchez bluff and taking better advantage of the beautiful views the Mississippi River at Natchez offers.

Likely even the organizers at the Community Alliance would have been unable to imagine just how successful the first phase of the Natchez Trails would become.

Today, the simple stretches of concrete, and in less improved places, crushed rock paths, attract people from all walks of life — young and old, rich and poor.

Perhaps nowhere else in Natchez does the diverse fabric of our community become so evident.

The second phase of the project — a portion that will connect the historic St. Catherine Street area of Natchez — is well under way and ahead of the construction schedule.

We can only imagine how this phase may allow Natchez to be even more connected.

We’ve long suggested the city invest more heavily in repairing crumbling sidewalks, making them more friendly to baby strollers and wheelchair-bound residents.

The Trails does that, but so much more could be done to systematically rebuilding Natchez’s infrastructure, if the city would carefully begin investing in such a budget plan.

Evidence of how such an investment can make an enormous difference in the quality of life of residents and visitors is clear most any afternoon when the sun is shining and dozens of feet hit the Natchez Trails.