The city of Ethel has several improvement projects on its to-do list.
The first one that will be completed is the replacement of all the sidewalks along Main Street, as the original Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) grant from the Mississippi Development Authority was approved in 2016.
The project had been held up until the city could commission a survey to determine whether the current sidewalks are on city property or if the city would need to obtain rights of way from property owners. Willis Engineering of Grenada has now been verified that all the sidewalks are on city property.
The CDBG will fund about three-quarters of the $100,000-$150,000 sidewalk replacement effort.
“We can now move forward into the planning stage and then get contractor bids,” said Mayor Gwen Sims.
The city is now embarking on an effort to obtain another CDBG to replace the Hughes Street sewage lift station. The lift station helps move sewage from area homes to the sewage lagoon. The small cement building’s back wall and floor have now significantly separated, and residents served by the station regularly suffer slow sewage drainage.
“It’s an old station and the building is starting to crack in the back,” said Sims. “It is really causing drains to move very slowly and residents have to plunge a lot to get it to move.”
A ballpark estimate for the project is about $181,000, with at least half hopefully funded by the Mississippi Development Authority if the application is approved. Officials hope to learn of the fate of the project this fall.
Finally, Sims and the Board of Aldermen are holding a contest with Ethel High School students to develop a city flag.
“We want to get young people involved, and it will benefit the town,” said the mayor. High school students can submit flag designs to the city by May 31, and the mayor and aldermen will pick a winner and have city flags made up for public events and to take to conferences and other public meetings to represent the city.
The winner will receive recognition as the flag designer and a $25 Walmart card and the first runner up will receive a $10 Walmart card.
