South Ward Alderman is no longer a one-man race.
District 54 State Rep. Alex Monsour said Wednesday he is running for South Ward Alderman.
Monsour, 54, who is in his third term in the House, said he will qualify as a Republican for the seat Feb. 15 at the City Clerk’s Office.
He will face incumbent South Ward Alderman Willis Thompson, who qualified for re-election Jan. 3. Thompson is seeking his second term. Alderman is a full-time position and has a salary of $74,550 a year. The mayor and aldermen will each receive a 5 percent raise July 2018.
“I want the people to know I appreciate them trusting me to be their state representative, and we’ve got numerous projects coming to Vicksburg and the surrounding area for jobs,” Monsour said. “We’ve changed legislation to help municipalities, but I just feel I can come back home and be on the municipal board and contribute with my knowledge and my access to the capitol and making Vicksburg what it should be at a faster pace.”
“I looked at several facets; I looked at public safety, I looked at the infrastructure, I looked at the quality of life with things for families to do here, and I just think we’ve moved in a slow pace and we need to move forward instead of looking all around us and seeing everybody do what they can.”
He said one of his main goals as alderman will be to ensure “that we move economic development forward to where we produce jobs here so that people will be able make a living wage and this will be a place where their children can come back to for opportunities.”
He pointed out several proposed projects coming in the future and affecting the city — the $18 million project to connect the east and west sides of South Frontage Road, the potential of 2,500 to 5,000 jobs from the Continental Tire plant near Clinton, the city’s sports complex and the waterpark for South Frontage Road.
“That’s going to require somebody who’s going to be diligent and working on all these facets to make our community what it can be,” he said.
Monsour was first elected to the Legislature in 2008. He is the second local legislator to announce he is running for city office.
Mayor George Flaggs Jr., represented District 55, ran for Mayor in 2013. He retired the day before he took office.