The Jennings City Council is considering a request to annex 10 to 14 acres west of the Camelot Brookside retirement home on the North Service Road into the city limits for the construction of a commercial truck dealership.

Old River Truck Sales, based in Richland, MS, wants the city to annex their property into the city limits to allow the business to receive city services, according to Mayor Henry Guinn.

The company plans to build a commercial truck dealership specializing in sales, parts and service of Mack, Volvo and other brands of heavy trucks and trailers.

The council is expected to adopt an ordinance providing for the annexation of the property into the Sunshine Addition at its next meeting at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 8.

If approved, the annexation will allow the city to provide water and other utility services to accommodate the new dealership, as well as other future businesses, Guinn said.

“There is a small economic boom happening throughout the city of Jennings right now, I would like to welcome Old River to Jennings if y’all will have them in the city limits,” Guinn told the council Tuesday. “By annexing them it will obviously increase our sales tax base, but also increase our responsibility to provide services.”

The city is seeking capital outlay funds from the state to install a 12-inch water line and a lift station to accommodate new economic development along the Interstate 10 corridor.

In March, the Jeff Davis Parish Police Jury rezoned the property from agriculture to commercial to allow for the future location of the 18-wheeler sales and service dealership.

Old River currently has six locations in Lake Charles, Baton Rouge, St. Rose and Breaux Bridge, as well as Richland and Laurel, MS.

The truck dealership is the second business to announce plans to locate on the North Service Road, just north of Interstate 10.

Earlier this year, the city annexed 10 acres of rice fields on the North Service Road for Sunshine Equipment to relocate its John Deere dealership from Welsh and build a new $7.5 million dealership in Jennings.

The company broke ground in May at the future site of its new 28,750-square-foo dealership and service center. Construction is expected to be completed by March 2024.

No date has been announced as to when construction will begin on the Old River dealership.