The Pearl River Valley Water Supply District (PRVWSD) once again has room for its board meetings now that the district is settled in its new headquarters.
For at least a decade, the board met at Timberlake Campground Clubhouse because the conference room in its former headquarters at 115 Madison Landing Circle in Ridgeland had been converted into office space.
“It was not ideal,” said Adam Choate, district executive director.
The board had its first meeting in February at the new building, which is located at Bobby Cleveland Park at Lakeshore, 1112 Northshore Parkway. The board meets on the third Thursday of each month at 9:30 a.m.
Wier Boerner Allin Architecture designed the new headquarters, which contains about 15,000 square feet compared to 12,000 in the former office. The exterior features a mix of wood and stone fitting for the park setting.
The original estimated cost of the building was $8 million but the actual cost came in at $6.1 million, Choate said. The Legislature appropriated $2 million in 2024 to apply toward the project.
The district plans to demolish the former headquarters and then lease the land for development. That building, about 75 years old, was a farmhouse before the Barnett Reservoir was conceived and is in bad shape, Choate said.
Asbestos removal and remediation must be done before the building can be torn down, Choate said. The lowest quote to remove the asbestos is $40,000, he said.
Choate is not sure if the asbestos removal and demolition will be done during this fiscal year or the next one, which starts in July.
After the building is removed, the PRVWSD will continue with its efforts to redevelop the 50-acre property. “We’ll have a meet and greet with developers,” he said.
A mixed-use neighborhood development and neighborhood with a combination of residential living, retail shopping and dining and professional office space and a boutique hotel are suggestions for the site, Choate said.
Condominiums would be acceptable, but apartments are not, he said.
A developer would lease the 50-acre property from the district at a minimum cost of $3.6 million and must pay taxes on top of that, Choate said. The district requires that it be reimbursed for the cost of harvesting timber on the property.
The district is the state agency responsible for managing the 33,000-acre Barnett Reservoir and the 17,000 acres surrounding the lake, 12,000 of which are forest land.
