NATCHEZ &8212; The Natchez quality of life brought Jody Foster back to his hometown two years ago. His impressive construction credentials in his pocket, he decided it was time to move his family back to the place where he and his wife, Beth Mallory Foster, grew up.

The timing was right. First, he opened a construction company with his brother, Kelli, in Jackson. Then he began to see opportunities in Natchez.

&8220;I bought property on Auburn Avenue and built a 2,200-square-foot spec house,&8221; Foster said. &8220;That means it was speculative. I didn&8217;t have a buyer before I built it.&8221;

The house sold quickly. And now Foster has plans to develop the other acre and a half he owns adjacent to the first house.

&8220;I&8217;ve had a lot of interest from people in Natchez from that house,&8221; he said. &8220;I&8217;ve picked up a handful of pre-sold houses since then.&8221;

His eye is on the market, and he sees the same needs real estate agents are describing lately &8212; downtown houses, not too big and not too much yard maintenance required.

&8220;I&8217;m working on another patio house, townhouse development,&8221; he said. The property is downtown and only a few blocks from the bluff.

&8220;For me, that&8217;s a selling point. The whole downtown is Natchez&8217;s best attribute.&8221;

He is picking up other pieces of property for similar projects downtown or near downtown.

Foster said he has kept an eye on the Natchez market since Hurricane Katrina. &8220;There has been a steady influx of people, but there also is lateral move because the market is good,&8221; he said.

&8220;I think Natchez is on the brink of growth. As a developer, I still think Natchez is semi-risky without the promise of industry coming in. It&8217;s a fine line, whether to take the risk.&8221;

Natchez has not become a growing market such as Jackson or Baton Rouge. &8220;We&8217;re one industry away from a mini boom,&8221; he said.

Meanwhile, he is taking steps for the proper zoning, having things redrawn so that he will be ready when the time comes.

Two groups are looking for the smaller type houses such as patio and townhouses &8212; empty nesters who are downsizing and young married couples without children who like those developments &8220;if they are trendy enough.&8221;

Foster left the University of Mississippi with a degree in construction engineering, accepting a job with a big commercial construction company based in Colorado.

&8220;I worked all over the country in very large construction projects,&8221; he said. &8220;We built airports, hospitals and resorts &8212; $100-million-dollar projects.&8221;

A couple of years ago, he landed in Miami. &8220;I moved up very quickly. I loved the work and I miss it. But I didn&8217;t want to raise my kids in Miami,&8221; he said.

He was hesitant to come back to Natchez but knows now it was the right thing to do for his wife and three children.

With the company in Jackson doing well and development work in Natchez and in Concordia Parish growing, he is busy.

Furthermore, he is a consultant for three large national construction companies, and that keeps his hand in some mega projects.

Foster said he grew up liking to work on things such as tree houses and deer stands. He found the perfect program at USM and went into the work that he loves.

He continues to be excited about development and construction. &8220;It&8217;s tangible. You&8217;re not counting widgets every day. It&8217;s always changing.&8221;