News that Canadian National is again looking at abandoning its rail line between Brookhaven and Natchez should make all of us stop in our tracks.

While we’re glad to hear that CN, parent of Illinois Central Railroad, is in talks with another company to operate the line, the threat of losing rail service is still there.

That would be a blow to our economic development efforts &045; and that should be the kind of wakeup call we all need to keep our eye on the ball.

Natchez and Adams County have unique opportunities ahead.

With the position of Economic Development Authority director open, we have a chance to recruit a dynamic leader into that role, one who can help lead our efforts and be a partner for the EDA board, the city and the county.

But to attract a quality individual, we have to maintain a reputation for working together.

That reputation has improved in recent years, but sometimes politics and other divisions raise their ugly heads. We hope our leaders will keep those conflicts in check when looking at economic development.

We have some great things happening in our community: MDOT is improving our infrastructure with a new Trace terminus and future intersection changes; new residents with big ideas are moving in every week; and investors are looking to build a condominium development on the river, one they hope will attract new development to downtown.

But to keep things moving in the right direction &045; and to help keep rail service here in Natchez &045; we need to continue to work together. We are lucky to have a friend in MDOT director and former mayor Butch Brown, who said the state is committed to keeping rail service here.

We need to continue to work those connections &045; and work together &045; to keep economic development on the right track &045; or on any track at all.