By VERSHAL HOGAN

The Natchez Democrat

NATCHEZ — Adams County officials honored a business Tuesday they said proves naysayers about the area’s economic future wrong.

The Adams County Board of Supervisors honored Enersteel as its business of the Month Tuesday.

“This is a company that came in and exceeded everybody’s expectations,” Supervisor Mike Lazarus said. “There are a lot of naysayers out there who say things aren’t happening, but (Enersteel is) hiring people every day, and if you are qualified, they will hire you.”

When the company acquired the former Dynasteel facility in mid-2011, it retained approximately 25 Dynasteel employees.

Operations Manager Aaron Shermer said the company currently has 120 employees but at times has as many as 150 to 200 people working at its facility.

The company announced in May a plan to expand its facilities and add 20 new jobs by adding a tank head manufacturing product line. In August, a second expansion announcement — which is expected to add 45 jobs — was also made.

“We are bringing in business that hasn’t been in Natchez before with our tank head manufacturing, and we are using Natchez-Adams County contractors for our expansion,” Shermer said.

Enersteel markets tanks for biofuels, liquefied natural gas and for refineries around the world. The Natchez facility also manufactures clean-air ductwork for the power generation industry.

In other news:

-The board met in executive session to discuss the sale of the former International Paper property, which the county recently acquired from Rentech for $9.5 million.

The board likewise discussed the ongoing effort to sell Natchez Regional Medical Center and two personnel matters in executive session.

-The board discussed several emergency watershed projects that have been delayed because landowners would not sign property easements to allow the county to work on their property.

EWPs are federally-funded projects to stop erosion that could potentially affect property or structures.

After County Engineer Jim Marlow said none of the projects that were held up by landowners would affect county infrastructure, President Darryl Grennell said the county could abandon the projects.

“It’s their loss,” he said.

-The board presented resolutions of appreciation to Erle Drane, the retiring veterans services director, and Benny Henderson and Emmanuel Morgan, two long-time county employees who retired this year.

The board also presented County Judge John Hudson with a resolution congratulating him for 30 years on the bench, and gave Natchez resident Tim Givens a resolution of appreciation and a framed Adams County flag for his work in designing the flag.