If the Miss-Lou were a baseball team, its collective batting average would be on the rise.

This week, Vidalia officials announced a new industry coming to the city.

Advance Building Supplies purchased land in the Vidalia Industrial Park and plans to begin construction in 30 days. The company will manufacture custom oilfield buildings. The process is expected to create approximately 25 to 30 new jobs for our community.

The news is the latest “hit” our local economic developers have made. Although in total, the new jobs announced to date are far below the number our area had in its industrial heyday, it’s important for us all to remember that after years and years of losing jobs, our area appears to finally be growing new jobs — and not a moment too soon.

We’re excited by the growth our area is seeing. Clearly the ball has begun rolling and appears to be picking up steam.

The more we work together to create an atmosphere in which world-class businesses can locate and produce world-class products that are sold elsewhere, the better and more stable our economy will become.

Welcome ABS and all of the other new employers we’ve seen recently. Hopefully, these are just a few of many more to come.