The process to bring and water and sewer lines to the proposed federal prison is ongoing.

City aldermen and county supervisors voted last week to proceed with grant applications to fund the water work.

Natchez Water Works and the Adams County Water Association, which is not connected with the county government, agreed to furnish sewer and water to Corrections Corporation of America when it was looking at locations.

But the county and city water companies don’t have the money to build roughly $5 million in infrastructure like sewer lines and a water tank.

That’s where grants come in.

Any grant money is money the waterworks and water association won’t have to spend on installing sewer and water systems.

Both local governments, cooperating on this project, recently gave the Southwest Mississippi Planning and Development District the go-ahead to apply for grants for the water and sewer systems.

The governments are serving as a conduit for the grants because private companies can’t always apply for federal grants, Development District Executive Director Wirt Peterson said.

“The intent of the funds is to help local governments to allow private industries to create jobs,” Peterson said. “Based on the fact that (CCA) says it will provide 275 new jobs, I think that certainly meets the requirement.”

The development district will apply for funds from the Delta Regional Authority and Community Development Block Grants, both federal dollars.

CCA has said it needs to complete its prison as quickly as possible to meet GO Zone benefit deadlines.

Peterson said he wouldn’t say whether he thought the county and city would get the funds.

“It’s strictly out of my hands,” he said.

With any luck, the grants won’t need any match money, he said. If they did, it would come from the waterworks, water association and CCA, not the city and county.

The development district is a nonprofit organization that helps write and manage grants for 10 nearby counties.

Running sewer and water to the prison would be good for both the water companies and CCA, CCA spokesman Steve Owen said said.

The water companies won’t have to spend money to run the lines, and CCA won’t have to spend millions to build its own water and sewage treatment plants.

“It’s good to see the process is progressing along,” Owen said. “The enhanced infrastructure is probably in the long run very good for the county and city.”

Any grant funds would go strictly to fund the water and sewer projects, not the correctional facility.

“The prison is our project alone,” Owen said.