Video: West Point Economy Improving

[syndicaster id=’5885315′]

West Point, Miss. (WCBI) — The city of West Point is making an economic comeback after experiencing some tough economic times in the past decade.

The last time Clay County posted an unemployment rate below double digits was May 2006.

That streak ended this past April, when the unemployment rate dropped to 9.4%.

The current rate as of June is 11.4%, but many are optimistic that those numbers will only improve thanks to the Yokohama project.

“The vast majority of the improvement that we’re seeing in the economy in West Point and Clay County is due in large part, I’d say 90% probably or more, to the Yokohama project”, says Golden Triangle Development LINK chief executive officer Joe Max Higgins, Jr.

Higgins says the project is something the people of West Point earned.

“They were rewarded handsomely for not giving up and I think that’s a testament to their will, their personality, and just the fabric of who they are.”

With the Yokohama project only in phase 1, there are three more phases planned.

Along with the Yokohama project, the city of West Point is also gaining a new hotel as well as a new strip mall.

Some local businesses today told WCBI that the turnover on employment has been low due to the tough times, and many employees are sticking to the work they are currently doing.

Higgins also told wcbi that the Golden Triangle area has $1.8 billion in prospects they hope come to the area.

The current unemployment rate, as of June, for the Golden Triangle area is 8.5%, the lowest the area has seen in the past 5 years.