A RECENT TRIP to meet with the state’s delegation in Washington, D.C. highlights what has become a familiar role for those serving on the Pearl River Levee Board: asking for money.

With the 30-year anniversary of the Easter Flood approaching, the capital city and its residents are no safer from flooding today than they were when the levees were breached in April 1979.

The levees could, however, be strengthened with the paperwork generated by the levee board. In the 12 years since John McGowan first presented his Two Lakes plan, the board, made up of members from Hinds and Rankin counties, has spent more than $3 million studying his and other plans.

Despite having proof that the Two Lakes proposal would be the best plan for Jackson, the levee board continues to seek funding for additional studies. In March, two levee board members headed to U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran’s office, again with their hands out.

“We go up there once a year to ask the delegation to get us into their budget for studies,” said levee board Chairman Billy Orr in a recent telephone interview. “There’s not a whole lot of money for studies. There’s not much going on since the adoption of the Lower Lake plan.”

WHEN THEY’RE not seeking congressional funding, some board members are apparently working to kill the plan that some say would actually prevent millions of dollars in property damage in a flood and generate billions in new revenue, jobs and developable property for the entire metro area.

The board is planning to meet with the Hinds County Board of Supervisors in an attempt to get them on board for the lower lake plan. The board has already passed a resolution supporting Two Lakes.

And on Monday, after studying it for more than a decade, the board will again allow McGowan a chance to plead his case for the Two Lakes - something he’s done on numerous occasions. And although he’s glad to get the opportunity, “most of what I told them hasn’t changed,” he said.

McGowan is so convinced that his plan will be a success that the Northside businessman has told the board he’s willing to donate his land along the river to make way for the project. “I don’t care who gets credit for it, I just want to see it built,” he said in a previous interview with the Sun.

Dallas Quinn, an account executive with G. Williams and Associates, a marketing firm working on the project for McGowan, said the firm won’t make a full presentation Monday, but will give an outline, or a roadmap, rather, illustrating to the board how the project can be funded and permitted.

LAST WEEK, officials were gathering the final pieces of information. “We’re evaluating all the financial and environmental options and the best way to achieve them for the project,” Quinn said. “We believe it’s a viable tool that will provide flood control and economic development in Jackson.”

Plans for the project call for creating two large lakes stretching from the mouth of the Ross Barnett Reservoir to south of I-20 near Richland. The most recent version of the $290 million proposal includes the construction of 27 to 36 small islands for residential and commercial development.

The project would create more than 100 miles of developable waterfront property in the two counties and create about 7,000 acres for development, generating millions of dollars in additional revenue for the capital city - funds that could be used for public safety and infrastructure improvements.

“One reason why I was interested in the Two Lakes is because it could recruit doctors to University Medical Center,” said Leland Speed, a board member representing North Jackson. “In the next five to seven years, the hospital will have to attract approximately 200 new doctors.

“Quality of life is crucial for the city as we try to overcome negative perceptions,” he said. According to information provided by McGowan, Two Lakes would generate an estimated $51 million in property tax revenue for the capital city. Another $16 million would be generated for Flowood.

Along with the board of supervisors, the Jackson City Council also passed a resolution supporting the project. Other Northside leaders have also shown their support. Ben Allen, president of Downtown Jackson Partners, said Two Lakes is needed to protect the city as it begins a rebirth.

ALTHOUGH another Easter Flood wouldn’t kill downtown Jackson’s revitalization, with projects like the Pinnacle Office Building, Jackson Convention Complex and the King Edward Building coming on line, it would definitely be more costly than it was years ago.

Allen said the lower lake plan, which includes bolstering the levees that failed in 1979 and building a small lake near I-20, wouldn’t provide downtown with the flood protection it needs. Furthermore, it would provide little, if any, economic development opportunities for the area.

McGowan said the project could be funded through a public-private partnership. Despite its benefits, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers doesn’t support the project. A draft feasibility study leaked to the press in 2007 showed that the project would cost $1.4 billion and be economically infeasible to build.

When the study came out, the levee board initially stated that the corps’ figures were inflated, a stance that was reversed after board members from Rankin County began supporting the Lower Lake plan, a plan drawn up by architects during a five-day charrette, or planning session, two years ago.

McGowan said the corps’ estimates are over-inflated. The study, which hasn’t been released despite several requests, sets aside $270 million for engineering alone. Gary Walker, an engineer for the corps, said the study still has to go through a comprehensive review process before it can be made public.

He said the board has yet to authorize the corps to begin studying the Lower Lake project and is unsure how much a study would cost. However, he said studying the project shouldn’t take as long, because it combines the elements of Two Lakes and the comprehensive levee plan.

THE TWO LAKES project only lacks one vote to move forward. Last year, the levee board voted 4-3 along county lines to build levees, not lakes, on the river. The move infuriated many Northsiders, like District One Supervisor Robert Graham, who question the makeup of the governing body.

“The problem is that Jackson and Hinds County only have three votes, and we’re frequently out-voted on issues,” he said, referring to the seven-member levee board. Four members are from Rankin County, including the board chairman, as well as the mayors of Pearl, Flowood and Richland.

According to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Web site, the combined populations of the three Rankin County cities represented on the levee board make up about 38,000 people, about a fourth of Jackson’s total population of 175,000. Graham said representation is unfair for the capital.

“We have to see that legislation is passed to increase our voting capacity,” he said.