Madison MS neighborhoods are coming together in a new organization designed to keep property values high in Madison MS subdvisions to  protect the integrity of the city.

"Let's move forward and show the rest of the metro area what we can do to preserve our neighborhoods. They're our greatest asset," Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler of Madison MS told a crowd of more than 50 residents representing 35 neighborhoods who met last week to create MONA, or Madison Organization of Neighborhood Assoc.

With the city's assistance, the representatives from across Madison MS voted to form the new civic group designed to promote the quality of neighborhoods and foster cooperation between homeowners associations.

"We're here for the neighborhoods. We're here to help each other," said Cherry Prather of the Armonde Court association, who was chosen as the new group's vice chairman of membership.

Butler said the organization will play an important role in the city.

"As Madison begins to age, we need to do it with dignity," she said. "We need to come together to face issues as we grow old and as we grow better.

"We need to make sure our older neighborhoods keep their values as as the new ones do," Butler said. "This organization can lay out the future of how we protect our neighborhoods."

 David Wilson, the city's neighborhood service manager, said that as members of MONA, neighborhoods with active homeowners' groups and those without can help each other.

"We need for associations to interact," he said.

Nell Tharp, president of the Stonegate Madison MS  homeowners association, said the city-wide council will help "give us some backbone" in getting local residents to abide by neighborhood covenants in keeping with the high standards Madison MS has adopted.

Ron Smith, with the Sherbourne Madison MS homeowners group, volunteered to serve as chairman of MONA, bringing 15 years of involvement with homeowners groups. The new organization will allow groups "to work with one another to make sure everyone is enforcing standards the same way," he said.

Neighborhoods that don't have active associations can participate in MONA, but the citywide organization can help those neighborhoods take steps to form their own local groups, Smith said.

"The more people we have, the easier it's going to be," he said.

Neighborhoods that had residents attending the first meeting were: Bradford Place, Summertree, Cypress Lake, Sandalwood, Northbay, Belle Rose, Treasure Cove, Locust Hill, Colonial Village, Highland Ridge, Victoria Park, Traceland North, Armonde Court, Oak Hollow, Geneva Gardens, Madison Oaks, Stonegate, Calumet, Brisage, Rolling Hills, Crescent Landing, Cedarmont, Arbor Square, Pecan Creek, Hunter's Pointe, Cobblestone, Highwoods, Wright's Mill, Tremont, Lake Castle, Woodbury Park, Wood's Crossing, Windsor Hills, Trace Vineyard and Sherbourne, all Madison Mississippi Neighborhoods.