Who ever said meetings have to be boring?

By Kevin Cooper (Contact) | The Natchez Democrat

Published Sunday, September 30, 2007

Let’s face it; meetings are often boring. “I’d like to make a motion to accept the minutes of last month’s meeting into the official record. Do I hear a second? …”

And the beat goes on, assuming participants follow Robert’s Rules of Order, the de facto guide for how to run an orderly meeting.

So when you’re expecting a boring meeting and you’re surprised that it isn’t, it’s all the more appreciated.

Recently, I’ve been a participant in two meetings, however, that didn’t bore me. In fact, they both inspired me — both involved the Natchez-Adams County Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors.

The first meeting was a “howdy up” kind of meeting in which all the new board members met one another — though most were already at least somewhat familiar.

Realtor and developer Glenn Green was one of the first to speak, each participant was asked to talk a bit about what they thought about the community and the chamber.

“I don’t know what it is, exactly, but this area seems to be on the cusp of some great things happening.”

At another, similar meeting, Moe LeBlanc, with Brown Bottling Group, pointed to relationships as being the key to economic growth in the area.

A few minutes later, incoming chamber board chairman Cliff Merritt rattled off a list of great things happening in the area.

His list and my expansion on his list includes:

A new prison being constructed in the county that is expected to bring a big economic impact when it goes online.

Five new hotels are either under construction or in the works.

Rentech is still in talks with the county to buy a portion of the former International Paper Co. site for development of a coal-to-liquid fuel plant.

Delta Biofuels seems to be riding high and making a success out of its biodiesel plant at the former Ethyl Petroleum additives

New retail and residential developments are under way at both ends of U.S. 61.

The Lane Company is still talking with the City of Natchez about possible Roth Hill developments.

Improvements in infrastructure are nearly complete with the newly reworked Natchez Trace terminus and the intersection work where the Trace meets Liberty Road and U.S. 61.

The National Park Service is still moving ahead with plans to further develop the Fort Rosalie site on the bluff and is studying whether the Forks of the Road site could be included into the Natchez National Historical Park.

The Natchez National Cemetery has expanded its facilities, taking advantage of one of the most magnificent views of the Mississippi River. If you haven’t driven out to the new expansion on the riverside of Cemetery Road, it’s well worth the drive.

Across the river, the Vidalia Riverfront is booming.

The success of automotive dealers is always a good barometer of the economy. Heritage Dodge in Natchez has finished its beautiful new facilities. Newly opened Performance Dodge in Concordia Parish seems to be doing well, too. Both successes seem to indicate good things happening in the local economy.

All the local banks seem to be doing well, too, which is also a promising sign.

As Merritt talked and I thought about other issues happening in the area, one thing became clear.

Truly, the “cusp” as Green described, may be happening already.

Natchez-Adams County, along with the rest of the Miss-Lou, is moving ahead — fast.

And, hopefully, the newly reorganized Natchez-Adams Chamber of Commerce will be there to help lead the charge and help become a catalyst for even more business development — and that will certainly make for less boring meetings for all.

Kevin Cooper is publisher of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3539 or kevin.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.