Natchez officials nullify agreement for converting old hospital into apartments

NATCHEZ, Miss. – The mayor and aldermen Tuesday rescinded an agreement with a private foundation to convert the old Natchez General Hospital into apartments.

Mayor Dan Gibson broke the Natchez Board of Aldermen’s 3-3 tie and voted to nullify the agreement because of widespread resistance. He said he doesn’t want to “force something down the throat” of residents living near the Oak Street facility. “If a neighborhood is opposed to something, we have to listen to the neighborhood.” the mayor said.

Plans for the 95-year-old hospital building becoming apartments have been so contentious that residents in opposition sued the city in two cases that wound up in the Mississippi Court of Appeals. The court in August threw out the lawsuits. Its decision noted the Board of Aldermen’s 2018 agreement with Magnolia Medical Foundation was tentative and not final. It was based on various conditions that Magnolia had to fulfill, such as investing money into the building’s renovation.

Gibson noted Tuesday that Mississippi Medical Foundation head Erica Thompson remains interested in the project, but the group has not provided sufficient details about its plans or the required upfront “earnest” money.

In nullifying the agreement with Magnolia, Gibson joined aldermen Valencia Hall, Sarah Carter Smith, and Dan Dillard in the vote. Aldermen Billie Joe Frazier, Felicia Irving, and Ben Davis voted not to rescind the agreement. Hall’s support for rescinding the agreement was pivotal. She this past summer defeated and replaced Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis, who as an alderman supported Magnolia’s plans for the old hospital.

Magnolia in 2017 said it envisioned spending $3.4 million for restoring the dilapidated building into 30 apartments for retirees. However, neighboring property owners voiced opposition to the foundation’s acquisition of the building amid concerns the apartments would foster more crime, cause street congestion, and decrease the value of properties in the northwest Natchez neighborhood.

The city acquired the old hospital in 2013 after the previous owner defaulted on paying taxes. Built-in 1925, it was Natchez’s main hospital until 1960. The board’s decision Tuesday leaves it uncertain what will become of the building as it further decays.