In the early 1990s, Meridian Mayor John Robert Smith was watching his community lose retail dollars to larger cities two hours away.

Located on Interstates 20/59 about halfway between Tuscaloosa, Ala., and Jackson, Meridian had lost its retail draw.

So Smith and other community leaders went shopping elsewhere, too.

They looked for a major developer who would help the city build a mall, with major anchor department stores, to help bring regional residents back to Meridian to shop.

&uot;Meridian is a regional economy,&uot; Smith said. &uot;We are the shopping magnet for the region, we’re the educational magnet for the region, we’re the healthcare magnet for the region.&uot;

Meridian has a population of 39,000 in a county of 78,000 people. But Smith said he and community leaders knew their population swelled during the day as residents from surrounding areas came to work, shop and eat.

But when stores were in decline several years ago, residents from outlying areas were traveling to Tuscaloosa, Ala., or Jackson to shop, rather than heading to Meridian.

&uot;We had lost our retail center,&uot; Smith said.

In 1994, Meridian courted developers to build a major shopping center. The result is Bonita Lakes Mall, which is anchored by Dillard’s, McRae’s, Sears and JC Penney. The city continues to work to develop

Meridian sold itself to developers by highlighting regional shoppers.

&uot;We knew we were targeting Alabama residents,&uot; Smith said.

The mayor realizes retail is not the first thing most people think of when they think of economic development.

&uot;Most folks, if it doesn’t belch, smoke or produce a widget, it’s not economic development,&uot; Smith said.

But the mall has increased sales tax revenue in Meridian by 53 percent since it opened.

And shopping for new retail draws was the beginning of Meridian’s push for a regional economic development effort, Smith said.

&uot;You have to balance&uot; retail with industry, he said.

&uot;Industrial jobs are the hardest.&uot;

For Smith, the idea of partnering on major projects began with a dinner meeting a few years ago with Alabama attorney Drayton Pruitt and economic development officials from Meridian.

&uot;(Pruitt) first opened the discussion of Mississippi and Alabama cooperating jointly,&uot; Smith said.

Economic development experts had identified a site near Meridian as a prime target for a major industry &045; but its location straddling the state line with Alabama presented an interesting challenge.

&uot;The buildable sites are on the Mississippi side,&uot; Smith said. &uot;But any large industry would help the whole area.&uot;

So the states decided to partner to try to pool their resources. The governors of both states met and agreed to the idea.

&uot;It makes sense,&uot; said Scott Hamilton, communications director for the Mississippi Development Authority, noting that the region shares a labor pool. &uot;The citizens of both states would benefit.&uot;