When 27-year-old Vicksburg native Jill Ashley moved home to Vicksburg in August after nine years away, a lot had changed, she said.

Fresh flowers, clean sidewalks, beds of trees and greenery meant a &#8220fresher, cleaner” looking Vicksburg.

&#8220Everything looks better,” she said. &#8220It’s a brighter city. The new downtown area has really grown. The landscaping is just beautiful. There are trees and flowers where there used to be just concrete.”

The beautification of Vicksburg is something city landscape architect Jeff Richardson, with the help of other city employees, has been working on continuously since 1994, when he first went to work in a department then part of the public works department. Joe Loviza was mayor. Richardson’s first job was to weed the Municipal Rose Garden on Monroe Street, which had just been completely refurbished.

Now, two mayors and 13 years later, Richardson is still at it. His budget, however, has increased from about $200,000 to more than $600,000, and his staff has gone from three to eight. And, the city seems to be glistening with beauty, said Ashley, a 1997 Warren Central High School graduate.

&#8220It makes the city more inviting,” she said.

While part of Richardson’s duties are to continue maintenance on such areas as the rose garden, he and his crew have been responsible for city sidewalk improvements, concrete flower and tree beds along Washington Street, street lighting, city entrance corridors and Welcome to Vicksburg signs. He hopes the city’s effort is an inspiration to community members.

&#8220From the beginning, it’s been almost like peer pressure. If the city maintains their property well, hopefully neighboring areas will maintain their property,” he said. &#8220It’s like raising the bar.”

Mayor Laurence Leyens, who pushed for major beautification when he first took office in 2001, said the city’s appearance affects the community’s quality of life.

&#8220A little bit of money makes a big difference. I will continue working on the aesthetics, which make a long-term economic impact on the community,” he said. &#8220Everybody wants to live in a clean town.”

Forty-seven-year-old Vicksburg native Mary Thomas said she has seen vast improvements in the city over the past seven or more years.

&#8220Old buildings have been torn down. Downtown Vicksburg is looking very good,” she said. &#8220All around downtown – you can see a big improvement. You can see the mayor is working to improve Vicksburg.”

Thomas lives in Oak Ridge, in the county and outside the city. She said she would like to see similar improvements made along county roads.

&#8220I see a big improvement in the city,” she said. &#8220Now they need to work on the county.”

Ashley, who moved home from Oxford, where she attended law school, said she has had friends visit from other places and comment.

&#8220They think it’s a quaint, beautiful Southern town,” she said. Vicksburg &#8220is becoming comparable with Oxford. Vicksburg is really getting there.”

Richardson, who now works for the planning department, said it’s not just the pretty flowers that make Vicksburg shine.

&#8220Landscaping is really the last thing. It’s just very visible,” he said. &#8220I’m the last thing. It’s a team effort all the way.”

The whole picture, into which the landscaping ties, relies on people pouring concrete, welders and workers to drive the bulldozers and track hoes.

&#8220I may have the idea, but all I do are the trees and the shrubs,” Richardson said.

Hudson Lowe, a Nabisco sales representative from Jackson, travels around the state and has been supplying Vicksburg for the past five years. He has noticed the changing landscape of Vicksburg since he first started working in the area, he said. He pointed out the beds that have been placed along Clay and Washington streets as being a noticeable improvement for Vicksburg.

&#8220Flowers tend to enhance the city. It shows somebody cares about the community,” he said. &#8220Everything is geared toward bringing in and attracting tourists.”

The beds along Washington Street, just south of downtown, are the newest addition to the city. Richardson said his crew began putting the concrete beds, which are 24 inches from the face of the curb to allow drainage, a couple of months ago. Workers are already planting what he calls his &#8220bread and butter” plants, which include dwarf adelia, low growing roses, carissa holly, low growing junipers, irises, lantana and verbena. Most of what he plants are perennials, plants that live from year to year.

&#8220I try to have a mixture of stuff going on,” he said.

Richardson said city officials and community members are who make the biggest difference in how the city looks.

&#8220My guys and crew are phenomenal, but it’s great having politicians wanting to do this. The citizens are a key player also because they want the town to look better,” he said. &#8220It’s almost like a subliminal thing – if it looks a certain way, it’s not so chaotic. If a town is clean and neat and tidy, people have a positive attitude about their community.”