On Monday, the Delta Regional Authority (DRA) and Gov. Kay Ivey announced that DRA will invest $1.1 million to enhance workforce training and development, help create technology jobs and deliver safe drinking water to the Black Belt region.

In Selma, the total investment of $86,080 will help support the emergency removal and replacement of corrugated metal pipe along a drainage easement in the LaForet Estates subdivision. The deteriorating pipe has created five sinkholes, which of course presents a danger to families living in that subdivision.

“The investment announced Monday by the Delta Regional Authority is going to have a powerful impact for Alabama’s working families,” said U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, D-AL. “By bringing more resources and better opportunities to Alabama’s Black Belt, we are empowering rural families to build a better life for themselves and their communities. Thank you to DRA and to the public and private partners who have made a continued commitment to expanding and strengthening public infrastructure in Alabama.”

We agree that this investment will help fix something incredibly serious in the city of Selma.  

DRA investments are made through its States’ Economic Development Assistance Program (SEDAP), the agency’s main federal funding program that invests in basic public infrastructure, transportation infrastructure, workforce development, and small business and entrepreneurship projects.

We applaud Ivey and the DRA for making this investment in an area of the state that is oftentimes overlooked. Every bit of help counts.