City-Parish Mayor Pro-Tem Scott Wilson on Parish Road Plan

CENTRAL – City-Parish Mayor Pro-Tem Scott Wilson, who represents Central on the Metro Council, said today the proposed Parish Road Plan is a big win for Central. Wilson cited the $88 million included in the plan to four-lane Hooper Road from Blackwater to Sullivan and four-lane Wax Road from the Central Thruway to Magnolia Bridge.

“This is money we cannot generate with a tax in Central,” he said. The amortization for $88 million in improvements is $4.7 million a year. Central taxpayers will only pay $1.4 million a year with a 1/2-cent sales tax.

Wilson said the Council district he represents also does well in the plan, which includes four-laning South Choctaw to the Central Thruway and widening Old Hammond Highway from Sherwood Forest to Florida Blvd.

He was pleased the plan includes extending North Sherwood Forest to Mickens and widening Mickens. This will create a new route allowing commuters to bypass Central and cross the Amite on Florida Blvd. When he began pushing the idea, he was surprised to learn his father Buddy Wilson had pushed a similar plan years ago.

“Some people are thinking the state will do all this. Believe me, they don’t have any money and they won’t!” Wilson said if the plan doesn’t pass, he doesn’t think it will come back. “This is our chance. We need to take it!”