Main Street is running right past us

By Ben Hillyer (Contact) | The Natchez Democrat

Published Friday, July 4, 2008

These days Vidalia Mayor Hyram Copeland has Main Street on his mind.

But if you check a Vidalia map you will not find the words Main Street anywhere on it.

There is not a Main Street in all of Concordia Parish.

In fact, the nearest Main Street is across the Mississippi River in Natchez.

Still, Copeland says he has been thinking of Main Street, all because of a conversation he had with a constituent recently.

During Tuesday’s swearing in ceremonies at the Vidalia Convention and Conference Center, Copeland shook the hands of many people offering congratulations.

Of all the constituents he talked to it was one particular discussion that stayed with him.

Talking about the river flowing just a few feet away, the man told Copeland that, if you think about it, “the Mississippi River is the Main Street of our community.”

It was an image that stuck with Copeland and one that he recently described when discussing his vision for leading the City of Vidalia in the next four years.

These days, Copeland is more convinced than ever that it is that image of the Mississippi River as the Main Street that brings our community together

“For the first time in many years I see a unity that hasn’t existed,” Copeland said. “These days it’s not a Natchez, Ferriday, Ridgecrest or Clayton issue. It’s a Miss-Lou issue.”

The elder statesman of the area, Copeland has been serving the public since 1976 when he was first elected as a Vidalia alderman.

In that time, he has seen the highs and the lows — from the opening of the Vidalia Hydroelectric plant to the closing of major industry.

In that time, he has discovered that what happens in Natchez directly affects Vidalia and what happens in Vidalia directly affects Natchez.

Even though the Mississippi River divides the two towns, they are inextricably linked.

“We have to join together to improve,” Copeland said.

Copeland admits that it may appear that the two cities are in opposition.

Take recreation for example.

Thursday afternoon the City of Vidalia announced that they had acquired the land behind the Wal-Mart Supercenter on Carter Street for a recreation complex.

For almost six years, Copeland has been working to provide area families with a state of art recreation facility that will also attract tournaments from across the region.

At the same time, Natchez has been talking about developing the same type of recreation complex.

Does this not conflict with efforts toward unity?

No, Copeland said. “It’s friendly competition,”

“Look at what we can accomplish once we build our facility and they build theirs,” he said

With the number of hotels being built on both sides of the river, Copeland hopes that together the area facilities could become a regional draw for major tournaments.

Instead of a Natchez recreation complex or a Vidalia recreation complex it would be a Miss-Lou recreation area.

That type of thinking is critical to the prosperity of the region, Copeland pointed out.

Concordia Parish and Adams County have a tendency to be overlooked and underestimated in their respective states, he said.

But by working together — not just in recreation but in industry, economy and infrastructure, as well — the area can pull together to create a strong regional voice.

Powerful thoughts from the area’s elder statesman.

Instead of feeling separated by the river, we should feel connected by it.

Imagine the possibilities.

Ben Hillyer is the web editor of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3540 or ben.hillyer@natchezdemocrat.com.