Mississippi State University’s Stennis Institute of Government and Community Development and senior landscaping architecture class have partnered together on a community assessment project for the city of Leland, Miss. The students’ completed projects will be presented to city officials and its citizens on Nov. 28.
Leland first partnered with MSU last year on the First Impressions program where a team assessed the city’s schools, housing and businesses and reported on how Leland looked to visitors. Leland had a lot of success with this program, and it also has a strong connection with MSU’s Delta Research Extension Center. This new partnership marks the first time students and the Stennis Institute have come together to work on such a project.
Leland’s community assessment involved the landscape architects and the Stennis Institute spending several days researching the city, its character and layout. The students performed an “Inventory and Analysis,” which included looking at amenities such as housing and physical attributes and measuring street and sidewalk widths. Deer Creek, which runs throughout Leland, became a focus for the students as well.
Taze Fulford, the landscape architecture professor leading the class, said Leland is undergoing many changes.
“The city is changing and will be getting an interchange in the next few years. The city wanted the students to look at the impact of the interchange and give recommendations of how to help control the growth that will come with it to help draw people back into the city,” Taze said. “We are looking at pedestrian connectivity along the creek corridor and an abandoned rail line through town to help provide healthy alternatives for people to use for moving around the city and so that children have a safe way to walk or ride a bike to school.”
Joe Fratesi, the project director at the Stennis Institute, said he is excited about the Leland partnership leading to more similar projects between MSU and Mississippi communities. A similar project on a smaller scale is already taking place in Water Valley, Miss., to help improve one of the city’s pocket parks.
“In the future, hopefully we will do more,” Fratesi said. “We work with local communities all over Mississippi. As we work with those communities, my job when I come back here is what resources do we have on campus that we can plug into that community.”
While the plans the students are creating will be graded for their class, Leland also will use their ideas for actual improvement within the city. Leland will be experiencing some economic development within the next five to seven years, and these presentations will help city leadership see how to best prepare Leland for this growth.
Stephanie Patton, a Chamber of Commerce member, said Leland is looking forward to seeing what ideas the students bring to the table.
“These plans will jumpstart new development ideas in Leland – a town that hasn’t implemented anything of this size and scale in many years,” Patton said. “Once Leland’s leadership and citizenry see what’s possible, and that these ideas can actually be implemented, I believe it will give us the confidence to take on more community improvement projects.”
This partnership has been a great learning experience for the students as well, Fulford said. He said it has been rewarding and challenging for the students, as they try to tie a community together that is about to experience a lot of growth and change.
“Real world opportunities for these students to walk real sites, work on real places, and present in front of community leaders has helped them gain a new perspective on what they can do when they graduate with a degree in landscape architecture,” Fulford said. “There is much work to be done in our communities, and it will take dedicated individuals that can identify need and translate the local culture, climate and materials into places that people care about.”