WEST MEMPHIS, AR (abc24.com) - Hundreds of jobs may soon come to Crittenden County. Half a dozen companies are interested in setting up shop in West Memphis. It's all thanks to a $10.9 million dollar federal grant to expand railroads.
When you think of big and successful transportation hubs you think Memphis. Arkansas Senator Mark Pryor is working to change that.
"This whole area right in the mid-section of the whole country, right on the Mississippi River, there will be lots of great facilities. We have several plants in Arkansas that would love to locate along the river,” Senator Mark Pryor, D-AR, told ABC24 News during a visit to West Memphis.
Senator Pryor visited county and city leaders all day Thursday to talk about what companies to attract to the area.
"They're several months away from really being ready for that but it's not too early for these big companies to start looking,” said the senator.
Transportation in West Memphis wasn’t the only thing Senator Pryor helped bring federal money. The Saint Francis Levee District also received help.
"It's not really exciting and it doesn't catch a lot of headlines when you appropriate money for protection of people through a levee system but over $110 billion dollars worth of assets were protected last year in 2011 during the record flood,” said the Saint Francis Levee District CEO and Chief Engineer Rob Rash.
Jobs will be available as soon as the railroad expansion project is set to be completed sometime next year.
