The Webster Progress-Times

Webster County's newest industry may begin production in just a few months, company officials said last week.

Front Line Apparel Group has contracted to buy the vacant Red Kap Industries building in Mathiston from owner Vanity Fair, President Ronald Levine confirmed at a Dec. 8 luncheon for the company. The Webster County Development Council sponsored the luncheon at the Eupora Depot.

The company will manufacture military uniforms. Levine, asked when the company expects to begin operating, said it had originally expected to begin next spring but could be doing business by the end of February.

"Things are moving along fine," Levine told those gathered. "We're just excited about coming here and the support we've received."

Vice President/Chief Financial Officer Victor Winogradow expressed gratitude for the support the company has received from the county and the Tennessee Valley Authority.

Those welcoming and meeting with Levine and Winogradow included Pete Fortner, WCDC president and mayor of Eupora; Mathiston Mayor Jimmy Carden and members of the Mathiston Board of Aldermen; members of the Eupora Board of Aldermen; Belinda Stewart, mayor of Walthall and WCDC secretary-treasurer; members of the Webster County Board of Supervisors and other county officials; state Rep. Jim Beckett of Houston; and representatives of the Golden Triangle Planning and Development District, Mississippi Development Authority, Holmes Community College's community and workforce development division, and local banks.

Stewart presented Levine and Winogradow with copies of "Ms. Booth's Garden," a book of photos by Jack Kotz, grandson of the late Myrtle Booth of Mathiston. The photos center on his grandmother's home and the Mathiston community.

Supervisors President Casey Weeks offered Levine and Winogradow any help needed from the agencies and governmental entities represented, and said he appreciated their taking interest in the building. Red Kap shut down operations in 2002.

"It's a good team," Winogradow said.

The county, through the GTPDD, has applied for an economic development loan of $250,000 to provide the company with operating capital. Local officials previously said the company plans to start out with 50 workers and expand.