Jackson Free Press

Along the Interstate 20 frontage roads near Bolton, all the indicators are that something big is about to happen.

Two or three crawler cranes tower over the railroad tracks as unmarked white box vans go in and out of gates marked with no trespassing warnings. Other signs notify the public that the area is being considering for rezoning and that any questions or concerns should go to the Hinds County permits and zoning department. Once in a while, a plane or helicopter flies curiously overhead even though the nearest airport is a few miles away in Raymond.

The preparation of what officials are calling a "megasite" has been under way for a year and a half, but for what exactly remained a closely guarded secret. The wait could soon be over, however.

"I would say it's a matter of weeks instead of months or years," said Hinds County Board President Darrel McQuirter, whose district encompasses the megasite, about an announcement.

McQuirter said the site is being marketed to several companies around the world but, like many other government and economic-development officials in the know, said he is not at liberty to disclose the names of the potential suitors. Hinds County supervisors and staff along with officials with the Hinds County Economic Development Authority, Mississippi Development Association and Gov. Phil Bryant's office all signed contracts prohibiting them from talking about the negotiations.

Rumors abound about what it might be, although the most frequently repeated possibilities are a firearm or ammunitions plant, an automobile manufacturer or a maker of automotive parts. The most anyone will say about what the future industrial site project might be is that it's will be comparable to the Nissan manufacturing plant in Canton.

That facility, which broke ground in 2001, consists of 4.2 million square feet on 1,034 acres in Madison County. The Hinds County megasite initially called for the removal of trees for a 5.2-million-square-foot industrial building and operations space located on 640 acres on what was 16th section land in an unincorporated area of the county, according to documents Gov. Bryant's office filed with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers because the site would affect more than 115 acres of wetlands.

The board of supervisors will consider rezoning an additional 264 acres on Jan. 18; the county's zoning board met the morning of Dec. 27 at the Hinds County courthouse in Raymond and unanimously voted to recommend the zoning change, which also aims to increase the buffer zone between the site and homes.

James Peden, an attorney representing local home and landowners, said before the county inks a deal, his clients want covenants in place to make sure that whatever ends up being built won't be too noisy or create dust and other kinds of air pollution. The covenants also restrict access points to the site so that trucks will not drive through neighborhoods. As long as those covenants are in place, Peden said his clients are agreeable to the proposed zoning changes.

McQuirter, the supervisor, says it won't be an ammunitions plant. He added that the firm the county is courting is open to the covenants residents want. He said the megasite, like Nissan, will eventually employ thousands of local residents, inject much-needed cash into the county's coffers and spur more development in the area.

Long-term, the plan is for the megasite to complement the Byram-Clinton Parkway. The 18-mile corridor is a proposed multi-lane route between Byram at Interstate 55 South, extending northwest to the Norrell Road interchange at Interstate 20 in Clinton. The parkway will consist of retail, residential and commercial development.

In 2015, Hinds County floated legislation to construct a new wastewater-treatment facility to accommodate future growth. Pieter Teeuwissen, the Hinds County board attorney, said for now the megasite would likely send its wastewater to the City of Clinton.

Trey Baker, a spokesman for U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson said the congressman supports developing the site in his district. "He's always in support of anything that will bring jobs into the district and will always do whatever he can from the federal level to be helpful to the state and local leaders to help bring jobs and economic development to the area," Baker said.

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