Natchez municipal administration begins new term

NATCHEZ, Miss. – The mayor and aldermen began their new term Monday with high hopes for more unity and progress as they work to advance what they’ve been doing the past four years.

“It’s time for us to do so much more,” Natchez Mayor Dan Gibson said after taking his oath of office for his second term.

Reciting a list of accomplishments by him and the Natchez Board Aldermen since 2020 –  such as repaving 50 city streets and upgrading city parks without raising taxes – Gibson said he looks forward to resurfacing more streets, building a gymnasium at Duncan Park and spending $24.5 million in federal funds recently awarded. The money is to enhance a Natchez corridor stretching from Devereux Drive through downtown to the bluff overlooking the Mississippi River.

“Many great things are coming our way,” Gibson said.

He and the six aldermen were returned to office in the spring elections – with the mayor having no challenger and just three aldermen encountering opponents. Expressing appreciation for what Gibson said is “a vote of confidence” by the Natchez electorate, they began their new term Monday with inauguration ceremonies at the Natchez Convention Center with at least 200 or more people in attendance.

“Together we shape the future of our city,” said Ward 3 Alderman Sarah Carter Smith, who begins her 13th year in office as the longest-serving member of the city board and is the city’s mayor pro tempore.

Joining Gibson and Smith in the new four-year term: Ward 1 Alderman Valencia Hall for her second term; Ward 2 Alderman Billie Joe Frazier for his third term;  Ward 4 Alderman Felicia Irving for her third term; Ward 5 Alderman Ben Davis for his third term; Ward 6 Alderman Curtis Moroney for his first full term. He was elected in 2023 in a special election to replace Dan Dillard, who died last year with one year left in the past term.

While the mayor and aldermen are in harmony on most issues, they can be sharply divided on some – with Hall, Smith, Davis and Moroney usually allied with Gibson while Frazier and Irving are in dissent. Davis sometimes sides with them, forcing Gibson to break tie votes.

Irving expressed hope for less division in the next four years.

“We don’t always agree with the issues at hand, but we can compromise,” she said.

After taking their oaths of office Monday, the mayor and aldermen held an organizational meeting to unanimously reappoint City Clerk Megan McKenzie, City Attorney Jack Lazarus and other city administrators.

However, the mayor and aldermen did quarrel in appointing two Natchez Convention Promotion Commission members and the city transit director.

While all aldermen voted to appoint John Grady Burns and Jennie Guido to the city tourism board, Frazier indicated the six-member commission should have more Blacks than the two that have been serving. Irving said aldermen should have more input in picking candidates to consider.

Guido, marketing coordinator for the Mississippi Tourism Association, and Burns, a designer and Natchez store owner, were recommended by the four sitting commission members. Guido and Burns are replacing Katie McCabe and Dana Wilson, who both resigned last year.

The mayor and aldermen also got hung up Monday discussing the appointment of Louis Davis as Natchez transit director. Since he’s related to Alderman Davis, questions have arisen that appointing Louis Davis could be violating state nepotism laws, Gibson said. Davis will serve as interim director until it’s determined he can legally stay in the position, which oversees the city’s public shuttle service.