With any luck, the lingering issue of whether or not Natchez and Adams County should invest public money into a new recreation facility will be on the ballot in November.

Officials are still working out details; however, we believe such a complex would be beneficial to our community in two key ways.

First, having better facilities will improve the quality of life for our residents. With a consolidated complex, parents would no longer have to fly across town to drop of children at different locations. Everything would be in one place.

In addition, the prospect of having the improved facilities greatly increases the chance that the area could become a destination for out-of-towners looking for a location for tournaments. That would mean a nice economic boost to the area.

Adams County Supervisors wisely agreed to put a non-binding referendum on the November ballot to gauge public support for such a facility.

Much work is needed in the coming weeks and months to explain exactly how such an arrangement might work.

It’s our belief that it’s possible the facility’s construction would not require an increase in taxes for citizens if we manage the plan well. As we retire existing public debt, the funds that are currently being used for those needs could easily be diverted to the new project.

How the project will shake out and what it will look like are not set in stone yet, but the fact that the public will be able to voice their opinion about whether or not they’d support the construction is a great, positive move.

Gauging public sentiment is a great way for our elected leaders to ensure that they’re doing work that is a top priority for residents.

And, in the case of recreation, that public sentiment may help turn decades of talk into a community-changing action.