Economic development leaders said Thursday that they were disappointed by the decision to close the Greenwood office of the Mississippi Development Authority.
The office is one of eight scheduled to be closed by June 30. The others are in Senatobia, Tupelo, Meridian, Jackson, Summit, Hattiesburg and Gulfport.
The news was expected, said Bill Crump, chairman of the Greenwood-Leflore-Carroll Economic Development Foundation.
“It has been on the cutting block on and off for some time. I’m hoping we’ll be able to convince the incoming MDA director to keep this office open,” he said.
MDA Director Brent Christensen recently announced that he’s leaving the agency that he’s led for the past three years. His replacement has not been selected.
The Greenwood office is located at 309 W. Market St. Frank Short, the regional office manager, could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Angela Curry, executive director of the foundation, said Short has done an excellent job running the office.
“The MDA office served as a liaison between our community and the state office. They helped us with industrial prospect visits,” she said.
The office also has provided local officials with research and other essentials and been a valuable resource, Curry said. The help it has given is irreplaceable in terms of attracting companies to the area, she said.
“That office will be greatly missed,” she said.
The downsizing effort is being done in an effort to streamline the agency’s operations. It also will involve eliminating 11 positions, 10 of which are currently filled.
Officials could not provide the cost savings would be for the agency.
Marlo Dorsey, the agency’s chief marketing officer, said the move is based upon a recent competitiveness study.
• Contact Bob Darden at 581-7239 or bdarden@gwcommonwealth.com.
