Business View Civil and Municipal | June 2022

43 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 3, ISSUE 6 class pump track. Another tourism perk is the city’s 65-foot replica of the Eiffel Tower, topped with a red cowboy hat, which Mayor Portugal says is a fun monument that draws people from all over the country. She shares, “It’s a delight to sit in the parking lot and watch the licence plates from different states and families get out and run toward it and take pictures.” The lake also hosts the Southern Drag Boat Association races annually and that partnership will last a long time to come. Allen acknowledges, “We are very fortunate to have some of those things that people look to Paris for. It helps our businesses, it helps our economy, and we work very hard to get more and more events into Paris to show off what we have.” The city is currently working toward an $80 million wastewater facility upgrade which could take three to five years to complete. Path says, “The current facility has been around for 80 years. It has reached the end of its life cycle and must now be completely replaced. The city is taking the safety of the water and sewer infrastructure very seriously. With recent replacement to a significant portion of distribution lines and now the facility, the city is investing in its infrastructure. This will be a big economic driver that will support new residential, new commercial, new industrial, and the city’s continued expansion.” They hope to see shovels in the ground for the new facility in the next 12 months. Looking to the next five years, Mayor Portugal hopes to introduce a lake beautification project to help attract more residents and increase the quality of life. Allen wants to continue to improve the quality of life for all and add more retail while continuing to support their long time business owners, while Hammond hopes to see increasing sales tax revenues, as well as more single family homes to build the city up. Summing up what they’d like to achieve, Mayor Portugal shares, “It’s our job as the Chamber, Economic Development Corporation, city and county to make this the place that younger generations want it to be. The work that the council is doing right now isn’t for my generation, but for our kids and grandkids. Those that live here and can benefit from the quality of life.” PAR I S , TEXAS