NATCHEZ &045; After Mississippi Department of Transportation officials went back to the drawing board on plans for a new Liberty Road interchange, many residents and business owners liked what they saw.

&uot;This makes a whole lot more sense,&uot; said Natchez Alderman David Massey, standing over a colorful map of the new &uot;alternative D&uot; during a public hearing Thursday on the interchange.

The new design &045; being developed in conjunction with the Natchez Trace Parkway extension &045; uses a modified partial cloverleaf but also includes more turnoffs on Seargent S. Prentiss Drive north of the Liberty Road intersection.

That makes it more business friendly, Massey said.

&uot;The least amount of businesses impacted is right here,&uot; Massey said, tapping his index finger on the map.

City of Natchez Engineer David Gardner also liked the new plan. &uot;When you consider all the factors, this (plan) does a good job of addressing the impact,&uot; he said.

Sports Center owner Wade Craig agreed.

His business, which moved last year from downtown to the old Kroger building, has greater access from Seargent Prentiss under the new design.

With the other alternative, a one-lane access road would have provided entrance to the shopping center where Sports Center is located.

&uot;Of the two designs I think D is the best,&uot; Craig said. &uot;Everything to the north is going to be better.&uot;

MDOT has already held a public hearing on its interchange design.

Three alternatives presented there did not satisfy the public, whose comments raised concern about the economic impact of the construction.

So MDOT went back to modify one of its original plans, winding up with two alternatives.

Still, not everyone is happy &045; with either design.

Several businesses along North Shields Lane would have to be removed with alternative D, or they would have limited access under alternative C &045; the only two plans left for public comment.

Bubber Zuccaro, owner of the Exxon station at Liberty Road and North Shields Lane, said he thinks the plans are too extensive for Natchez.

&uot;I think this would be a wonderful plan in New Orleans, Memphis, Baton Rouge or Jackson,&uot; he said.

&uot;It’s totally and completely overdone for a community in a deep, deep economic situation.&uot;

MDOT will leave about a month-long period for public comment, after which engineers will use those responses in preparing a recommendation on which design to use.

MDOT Director Larry L. &uot;Butch&uot; Brown didn’t pick a favorite plan &045; he left that to &uot;the experts&uot; &045; but he did note that the new design addresses the concerns of business owners.

&uot;It’s more costly, it’s more aggressive,&uot; he said. &uot;But it does do a lot of good things for the community.&uot;

For one thing, the city will get a new fire station. Under alternative D, the fire station would be removed.

The county will also get a new facility for such offices as the extension service and 4-H. &uot;This will make a bigger, prettier gateway,&uot; Brown said. &uot;This will make a great entrance to the city and the Trace.&uot;

Brown acknowledged that whichever design is chosen, it will not make everyone happy.

&uot;No matter what you do in transportation infrastructure, you’re going to affect somebody,&uot; he said.