09/10/2026
NINETEEN FEET MAY NOT SOUND LIKE MUCH. UNTIL THEY ARE THE NINETEEN FEET STANDING BETWEEN A COMMUNITY AND HOME.
For years, the closures at Coleman Avenue and Lindsey Drive changed daily life. Routes became longer. Neighbors were separated. Important connections were interrupted.
Today, those crossings are open again.
With IMS supporting the work, two small bridges over Town Creek and Lynch Creek are doing something much bigger: reconnecting people, restoring access, and helping neighborhoods move forward.
These bridges were led and independently designed by Tommy Avant, Jr. under tight deadlines, allowing the projects to move quickly into construction. They were the first bridges constructed from his own designs. Through guidance from senior technical staff Bernard Leblanc, George Ford, and his father, Tommy Avant, Sr., along with hands-on Construction Engineering and Inspection experience as an On-Site RPR, TJ has grown into IMS’s go-to engineer for State Aid bridge design across Hinds, Claiborne, and Adams counties.
His leadership, persistence, and commitment to developing as a bridge design engineer deserve recognition. These projects represent not only renewed community connections, but also the professional growth and dedication behind the work.
This moment reminds us that infrastructure is never just concrete, steel, or timber. It is the road home. It is access to opportunity. It is the connection between one neighbor and another.
Two bridges. Two neighborhoods. One renewed sense of possibility.
At IMS Engineers, this is why we Commit Beyond. Because every project is an investment in people.
What connection would make the greatest difference in your community?
