VIDALIA — A complaint from one Concordia Parish police juror about a sewer manhole that overflows wastewater during heavy rains near his house prompted the police jury to direct the parish engineer to quickly find a solution.

Juror Willie Dunbar asked members of the Concordia Parish Sewer District 1 board what needed to be done to fix the manhole at the corner of Victoria Road and Concordia Park.

Dunbar said he wanted the manhole covered and closed.

Sewer board member George Jolla Jr. said the manhole is an integral part of the sewer system and cannot be closed off. Jolla told the jury the problem is that the manhole is in the lowest part of the system, so water naturally flows out of it.

Jolla said the solution would be to upgrade the lift station or install a bigger station. He said the sewer board needs funding to upgrade not only that lift station, but also other lift stations that are not properly functioning.

Dunbar repeatedly said he wanted the problem fixed because it was a health hazard, and the smell of the wastewater is a nuisance to residents.

Jury President Melvin Ferrington asked if the manhole could be raised to alleviate the problem, but Jolla said it could not.

The jury passed a motion to direct the parish engineer to look at the manhole and find a solution.

In other news from the meeting:

4The police jury passed a motion to turn over a request to the jury finance committee from Concordia Economic and Industrial Development District Director Heather Malone for $15,000 for a regionalism marketing campaign to recruit new business.

Malone explained that the Adams County Board of Supervisors has pledged $10,000 contingent on the parish’s $15,000 contribution. Natchez Now, the private fundraising arm of Natchez Inc., has pledged $5,000, Malone said.

The amount of the contributions, Malone said, is based on each entity’s population.

Malone noted the economic development district’s financial woes and said she believed the marketing would be an investment in the economic development future of the Miss-Lou.

“I know at times marketing and advertising seems like fluff, but I believe it is truly an investment,” Malone said. “I believe unless we make an investment in ourselves, we’re not going to see any kind of development.”

Ferrington told Malone that he and Secretary-Treasurer Hazel Dickson had reviewed the parish’s budget and could not find any funds for the marketing campaign.

“It’s not that we don’t want to, and it’s not that we don’t think it’s needed, but I don’t like to spend money we don’t have,” Ferrington said.

Malone asked that the police jury not completely close the door on funding the marketing campaign.

“If there’s any money, I would rather take those baby steps, than completely close the door on it,” she said.

The marketing campaign, Malone said, would be a three-year commitment from the governmental entities and would also involve asking private businesses for funding.