NATCHEZ — Federal stimulus dollars will be lighting the streets of Natchez.

That announcement came from Mississippi Department of Transportation Director Butch Brown at an awards ceremony Thursday honoring the Liberty Road Bridge.

And the new lighting project will use the same street lamps that are currently in use on the Liberty Road Bridge.

Once completed, a succession of new streetlamps will stretch from the foot of Mississippi River bridge to the new traffic circle, currently under construction, in front of Natchez Regional Medical Center.

“It’s the entrance into the state and a city with tons of character,” Brown said of the drive from Vidalia into Natchez. “We want to make it as welcoming as possible.”

Brown said since tourism is Natchez’s biggest industry, making improvements to the city’s entrances is important.

The project will be funded with stimulus dollars and currently has no timetable for completion.

No mention of matching funds from the city was made.

Brown said he had no cost estimates for the project either since it’s still in the preliminary stages.

Natchez Mayor Jake Middleton said he was pleased, and surprised, to hear of the new plans at Thursday’s meeting.

Middleton said he had not heard of the plans prior to Thursday’s meeting but is in favor of any beautification efforts for the city.

“I think it’s going to be a wonderful addition for our city,” he said.

And MDOT has other lighting projects in the works.

Brown said intersection improvement projects in town will be getting the same decorative lamps lining entrances into the city.