NATCHEZ — Adams County Supervisor David Carter suggested Monday the county could use property behind the Adams County Extension Service for a prison work farm.

Carter, who is also the extension service director, said members of the board of supervisors have expressed an interest in the work farm idea, as has one of the local judges.

Noting that Supervisor Calvin Butler has pushed the idea for several years, Carter said he has been under the impression the issue has always been where the farm would be located.

“We have a good location behind the extension office that would work well for that — the extension office can oversee it,” Carter said.

“Calvin, if you want to take the lead on it, it’s there.”

The board also discussed the possibility of getting permanent permission from the state legislature to donate funds to Home for Heroes, a local non-profit dedicated to veterans’ issues.

Home for Heroes founder Mark LaFrancis approached the board with a request for $4,500 to help with some of the programs the group hopes to implement, including — among others — an emergency assistance program for veterans who find themselves in need.

“Without our veterans, we couldn’t have a strong country, a strong democracy, and it is often said that we are the land of the free because of the brave, and that is absolutely true,” LaFrancis said.

Supervisor Mike Lazarus said the board would need to get legal clearance before any donation could be made.

“A lot of people don’t realize that just because you are a 501(C)3 non-profit does not mean the county can give money to you,” he said.

“There is only a list (of non-profits) we can give to.”

The board instructed its attorney, Scott Slover, to check with the state attorney general’s office to get the OK in the interim but also adopted a resolution requesting the area’s legislative delegation to draft local and private legislation that will permanently allow the board to give to the organization.

Slover said a similar arrangement already exists for the Natchez-Adams County Humane Society.

In other news:

–Emergency Management Director Robert Bradford said the FEMA 361 Safe Room project is 73 percent complete.

The exterior of the building —which is meant to withstand an EF5 tornado – is done, Bradford said, and the contractors are working on installing air conditioning, drop ceilings and interior walls.

Bradford said he has filed for a 60-day extension for the end of the contract, pushing the final date of completion to Nov. 24.

Bradford said he does not know if the extension will be needed, but he wants to make sure Adams County is not penalized by FEMA for the project going past its final date.

–The board heard comments from Javarrea Jones, a local resident who expressed concerns about the Natchez-Adams School District and how it is being managed.

–The board adopted a resolution of appreciating noting the 100th birthday of county resident Marie Louise Harris Rice.