LUY-Development

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  • Natchez Approves Landscaping for Black Union Soldiers Memorial, Advances Bluff Beautification Projects Article:

    Natchez Approves Landscaping for Black Union Soldiers Memorial, Advances Bluff Beautification Projects Article:

    NATCHEZ, Miss. – The landscape of the upper half of the city’s river bluff area is being enhanced with a plaza honoring Black Union Civil War soldiers along with the beautification of the nearby grounds surrounding the old Broadway Street train depot.

    The Natchez Board of Aldermen on Tuesday selected a Jackson area-based landscaping company to sculpt and cultivate a part of the green space at Broadway and Madison streets. This spot has been designated for a memorial paying tribute to formerly enslaved men recruited by the Union army stationed in Natchez. Four Seasons was the best of two bidders for the landscaping project.

    The agreed-to cost is nearly $443,000, which also includes doing drainage improvements for another city plaza being planned elsewhere to honor Hiram Revels, the first Black to serve in the U.S. Congress. A monument for the former Natchez aldermen is being planned on St. Catherine Street.

    Also in the works for the bluff area is new landscaping for the Broadway Street railroad depot with $362,000 the city received in state funds earlier this year combined with $90,000 in city funds. The circa 1915 train station reopened in 2024 as a Natchez visitors center with public restrooms and meeting space after a decade-long, stalled renovation process costing about $1 million. Planning is underway for the depot’s outdoor venue overlooking the Mississippi River.

    For the Black Union soldiers plaza, city aldermen in 2023 approved the design of the monument and park occupying part of the large green lawn at the bluff’s north section. More than 3,000 Black U.S. soldiers served in Natchez when it was occupied by the Union army beginning in 1863, according to historical accounts. The Board of Aldermen’s selection of the memorial’s landscaper Tuesday came a day after the city marked the anniversary of the Union troops’ July 13 arrival in Natchez 163 years ago.

    Private funds and public grants have been sought for the Natchez U.S. Colored Troops memorial, which has previously been estimated to cost as much as $1 million. The $443,000 landscaping costs accepted Tuesday does not include the monument, which an Oregon-based sculptor has designed.

    In another long-planned Natchez beautification project, aldermen agreed Tuesday to continue preparing to install decorative lights on the Mississippi River bridges connecting Natchez and Vidalia. The Mississippi Legislature has given Natchez $1 million to do this, but Mayor Dan Gibson said another $250,000 is needed from Louisiana before the lights are installed.

    For other construction-related projects discussed Tuesday, the mayor and aldermen:

     – were told it could cost an estimated $300,000 or so to renovate the city-owned cemetery’s Shelter House. The architecturally significant structure was built in 1914. It was designed by Natchez-born architect Samuel Marx, who went on to become a nationally acclaimed designer of homes, commercial buildings and furniture.

    – Agreed to seek a state historic preservation grant to help pay for reroofing the Natchez Museum of African American History and Culture. The city-owned building, dating to 1905, has a leaking roof.

    – Agreed to seek a state grant to plan for installing an elevator at City Hall. The 1924 building only has stairs going to its second floor, making it inaccessible for the disabled.

  • Fry building demolition project set to start next month

    Fry building demolition project set to start next month

    NATCHEZ, Miss. – A demolition company has been picked to tear down the downtown Fry building as plans for renovating the adjacent Eola hotel remain alive amid questions whether it’ll actually happen.

     

    Work is set to begin for the Fry in early August with pollution-abatement measures taken first before the asbestos-ridden building is knocked down, said Trey Hess, the consultant hired by Natchez aldermen and Mayor Dan Gibson to manage the project.

     

    The city-owned building is expected to be leveled by mid-October, according to the schedule Hess presented Tuesday to city officials.

     

    The Board of Aldermen selected Environmental Abatement Inc. of Tennessee to tear down the multistory building at the corner of South Pearl and Franklin streets at a cost of about $745,000. Federal and state funds are covering the costs. EAI was the lowest of three demolition bids submitted.

     

    The former office building and land have been contaminated with hazardous asbestos and other pollutants.

     

    As the building’s demolition causes dust and debris, steps will be taken “to protect human health and safety and doing it the right way,” said Hess, who noted he and various environmental protection monitors will oversee the project.

     

    The site is to become a parking lot for the yet-to-be renovated Eola hotel next door. While bedeviled with years of delays and financial hang-ups, “the Eola is going to happen,” Gibson said.

     

    As the vacant, dilapidated structure approaches its 100th anniversary of being built in 1927, planning by its private developers for its revival “is going very well” despite snags, Gibson said.
     
    “Success is wonderful, but sometimes it takes time,” the mayor said.
     
    He noted he’s been involved in “confidential discussions” about the Eola’s new ownership and development plans that can’t be divulged. Previous publicized plans had its renovation costing more than $30 million for it to become a Marriot-affiliated hotel.
     
    The Eola – seen as downtown Natchez’ largest commercial building — has been vacant since 2014 as developers struggled to finance its renovations.
     
    Plans for razing the 1950s-era Fry building have been ongoing along with the Eola project since 2021.
     

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded Natchez a $1.2 million grant for the Fry’s clean-up and demolition expenses, and the state Department of Environmental Quality provided the city a $500,000 loan for this if needed.

     

    EAI – the demolition company tearing down the Fry – lists various projects its done, including razing The Tennessean newspaper building in Nashville and Sam’s Town casino and hotel in Tunica.

  • Adams County government moves on as administrators come and go

    NATCHEZ, Miss. – Adams County Administrator Mitzi Conn worked her last meeting Monday as the county Board of Supervisors’ chief operating officer. 

    While she announced her resignation in May, Conn stayed till this week to wind down duties that included helping get the Natchez-Adams County Airport ready for commercial airline service that began last week.

    The board appointed Tuwanna Williams to take Conn’s place. On the job since last week, Williams attended Monday’s meeting as an observer as she gets oriented for the position that drew eight applicants and had a posted annual salary of $100,000.

    Prior to being hired by the county board, Williams was workforce development director for Copiah-Lincoln Community College and Natchez-Adams County.  

    Conn resigned after 15 months in a position filled by seven people on an interim or permanent basis since 2020, when Joe Murray departed after 10 years as county administrator.

    Conn said she doesn’t have a new job lined up yet and wants to have some time off. 

    The county administrator coordinates county government’s day-to-day operations and manages a $40 million annual budget under the governance of the five-member Board of Supervisors. A special task that’s won Conn high praise has been to help oversee upgrades for the county-owned airport. That required fast-track construction for a $7 million terminal accommodating passengers served by United Express jets, which began flying here July 1.

  • Adams County property owners encouraged to review tax assessments

    NATCHEZ, Miss. – Adams County officials are encouraging property owners to visit the tax assessor’s office this month to learn the newly assessed value of their homes, businesses and land. Property taxes due next year are determined by these annual assessments. 

    This comes after many Natchez-Adams County taxpayers expressed dismay in January when seeing large increases in their property value-based tax bills due this year.

    Meeting Monday with Adams County supervisors, Tax Assessor Larry Hughes urged taxpayers to visit his office, question how much their property assessment is and make their case for any needed corrections or clarifications. July 31 is the deadline for this public inspection of tax rolls.

    Any objections to assessed values will be considered by the county Board of Supervisors at an August hearing before the county tax roll is finalized. The actual amount of taxes each property owner is billed won’t be known until later this year after the board adopts the budget funding county government for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1.

    The annual tax bills property holders received in January caused sticker shock for many in Natchez-Adams County. Some amounts rose by 25 percent or more from the previous year. A state-mandated reassessment process resulted in property values rising due to inflation and other contributing factors. However, many Adams County taxpayers questioned whether their properties were overvalued. 
     

    The tax assessor is required to annually locate and assess all taxable property within the county. His office is responsible for setting fair, uniform and accurate values for each parcel of real estate and personal property, which includes machinery, office equipment, and other fixtures. The assessor annually presents the tax rolls to the Board of Supervisors for approval. 

    The property tax bills are the combined total owed to Natchez, Adams County, and the Natchez-Adams School District for running the local government operations.

  • Shootings at Natchez grocery and bar stir up community

    Shootings at Natchez grocery and bar stir up community

    NATCHEZ, Miss. – Adams County officials expressed sorrow and helplessness about this past weekend’s deadly shootouts at a Natchez grocery store and bar that resulted in three fatalities.

    While meeting Monday, Adams County supervisors, Sheriff Travis Patten and others acknowledged the separate incidents of violence that have stirred up the community.

    “It’s tragic. It needs to stop,” said Tim Houghton, who manages the county’s ambulance service. “Nobody can fix it except the people who are taking these actions.”

    Two shooters are charged with murders that Sheriff Travis Patten noted are hard to prevent when people are determined to kill their targeted victims. “They made a conscious decision to be part of what they were a part of,” he said.

    The separate killings Saturday and Sunday do not indicate that a rising homicidal crime wave is sweeping Natchez-Adams County, Patten said. “That’s not the community that we are,” he said. “It’s not Natchez.”

    Houghton noted Adams County’s ambulance service – AMR – responded to 12 assaults in June, which is up from the monthly average of three. 

    Prompted by the weekend shootings, county Supervisor Ricky Gray proposed the Board of Supervisors ban weapons from the Adams County administrative office building except for gunholders authorized to carry. However, with Mississippi law allowing people to freely carry guns in most public places, board attorney Scott Slover said he’ll research the legality of such a restriction. 

    In response to Saturday’s predawn shootout at the bar on Lower Woodville Road, Supervisor Wes Middleton suggested county officials consider imposing a curfew to mandate when such nightspots must be closed. 

    After the July 4 early-morning gunfight that erupted at JROC bar, Jaquavious Norman was arrested and charged with killing Michael Minor Jr. after Minor allegedly shot and killed Randolph Hannon in an argument over a dice game, according to the Adams County Sheriff’s Office incident report.

    After the July 5 early-evening incident at Southside Market, Natchez police arrested store employee Jamien Myles and charged him with killing Kenerick Wimley during an altercation at the Seargent Prentiss Drive grocery. 

    While three other people were injured in the two shootings, Patten noted more could’ve been – particularly at the busy grocery store. “I’m glad no innocent bystanders were hit,” he said.

  • Passenger airline comes with celebration and hope for commercial success

    Passenger airline comes with celebration and hope for commercial success

    NATCHEZ, Miss. – Local officials and residents are celebrating the arrival Wednesday of commercial airline service to Natchez-Adams County after three decades of being without, but the challenge ahead is to ensure it’s financially viable for the air carrier.

    “It’s difficult to get the air service, but it’s even more difficult to keep it,” said Jeremiah Gerald, the consultant city and county officials hired to help lure United Express to the Natchez-Adams County Airport. “So we need to make sure that we’re filling those seats.”

    United Airlines’ regional partner — SkyWest — will be operating the Natchez-to-Houston connection using 50-seat jets for the early afternoon, once-a-day flights to and from Hardy-Anders Field and George Bush Intercontinental Airport, a major United Airlines hub for connecting flights globally.

    “If these guys are not making a profit here in Natchez, they do have the ability to move to another destination,” said Gerald, pointing to other small communities competing for airline service.

    Natchez-Adams County officials have been aggressively wooing passenger air carriers since 2021. The Adams County-owned airport hasn’t had regular airline service since the mid-1990s.

    United and Skywest Airlines last October agreed to come lured partly by $950,000 in government money. The risk-mitigation fund is “to offset any losses” the airlines could suffer financially serving Natchez and the surrounding area, Gerard said. The money includes a $750,000 grant awarded to Natchez-Adams County in 2022 by the Federal Aviation Administration and $200,000 in city-county funds.

    Meeting early June with Natchez Mayor Dan Gibson and other local officials, Gerard highlighted the financial risks United-SkyWest are taking serving the community with a projected small profit margin.

    “We have high fuel costs right now, so that’s going into this equation. It’s going to be a little more expensive to operate that airplane now. So we need to be filling those airplanes (with passengers) as much as possible.”

    A Gulfport-based aviation and marketing specialist, Gerald works for the ASM Global Route Development consulting firm.

    While air fares vary, a one-way ticket from Houston (IAH) to Natchez (HEZ) cost $249 on Tuesday booked from United’s website for the Wednesday flight. It’s to depart IAH at 11:55 am and arrive HEZ at 1:10 pm. Gibson has said he plans to be on that maiden flight for the ceremonial arrival at Hardy-Anders Field.

    The SkyWest-operated, United Express-logoed Bombardier jets are to depart HEZ daily at 1:45 pm and arrive IAH at 3:05 pm. Next week’s July 7 flight to Houston has a $199 ticket price.

    The new air service has been lauded as an economic “game changer” to bring more tourists and  businesses to Natchez. It also provides a travel convenience for area residents no longer having to make long drives to and from regional airports in New Orleans, Jackson and Baton Rouge.

    Local use is a key to ensuring the new passenger air service’s financial success, Gerard said. “That’s what’s going to be what sustains the service in the short term,” he said.

    In advance of the July 1 start of airline service for Natchez-Adams County, an aggressive marketing campaign has been underway with a $150,000 advertising budget to get passengers to fly.

    To accommodate airline employees, transportation security officers and passengers, an existing airplane hanger has been converted into a terminal at a cost of nearly $7 million. The old airport terminal – an antebellum-style structure built in 1959 –  is functionally obsolete.

    The airport had commercial passenger planes landing here between the early 1950s and late 1980s and again briefly in the mid-1990s, according to the airport’s historical records.

  • Adams County board allocates funds state neglected for Youth Court

    NATCHEZ, Miss. –  County supervisors have agreed to divert funds to the Adams County Youth Court in place of state money the Mississippi Legislature failed to authorize be spent even though appropriated.

    Meeting Monday with the Adams County Board of Supervisors, Judge Walt Brown said state lawmakers didn’t extend a law set to expire July 1 that lets Mississippi Youth Courts expend about $2.5 million that was actually allocated.

    While Gov. Tate Reeves has been asked to call a special legislative session to rectify this failure, it’s uncertain if he’ll do so, Brown said.

    At the judge’s request, the county board agreed to transfer about $10,000 from the Adams County Youth Detention Center to pay court personnel.  

    Mississippi’s youth courts handle child abuse and neglect cases as well as juveniles charged with crimes. In the final days of the state Legislature’s annual session that ended in April, lawmakers killed a youth court reform bill that had passed the Senate and House. Brown noted the comprehensive bill to “totally revamp youth courts” also contained authorization to spend funds approved in a separate appropriation. 

     
    Various laws are set to repeal July 1 as a result of the reform bill’s death, which could create problems for youth court operations, according to reporting by Mississippi Today.

  • Supervisors Split on Extending Search for New Adams County Administrator

    NATCHEZ, Miss. – The Adams County Board of Supervisors disagreed Monday on whether to extend the search for a new county administrator.

    Supervisor Wes Middleton wants to give potential prospects another two weeks to apply, but his motion for this got stymied by a 2-2 tie vote.

    Board President Angela Hutchins said supervisors shouldn’t stall the search for someone to replace Mitzi Conn, whose resignation takes effect July 8. “We’re not going to prolong this,” she said. 

    With the application process now closed, eight people are bidding to be Adams County’s chief operating officer – a position with a posted salary of $100,000 a year.

    Hutchins said candidates will be interviewed June 23 as supervisors plan to decide who to appoint before Conn leaves a position she’s held for just a year. She’s the sixth person since 2020 appointed by supervisors on a permanent or interim basis.

    Middleton said insufficient public notification was given to people who might be interested in applying for the job. He noted that an initial job posting incorrectly contained an expired deadline date to apply.

    Supervisors aren’t publicly divulging names of applicants, but Hutchins said there’s a pool of well-qualified people. However, Middleton said more candidates are needed to help ensure supervisors have a competent person to fill “the most important position in the county.”

    Siding with Middleton is Supervisor Kevin Wilson, who said the next county administrator must have ample financial experience in managing public funds.

    Siding with Hutchins is Supervisor Ricky Gray, who voted against Middleton’s motion to extend the search timetable.

    Supervisor Warren Gaines abstained from Monday’s vote, but he acknowledged a new county administrator needs to be in place soon to prepare the annual budget supervisors must adopt in September. Gaines expressed hope Conn will assist the new county administrator prepare the budget after she officially resigns.

    Conn is resigning after 15 months on the job. She was hired in April 2025 to replace Stephanie Washington, who resigned after just 14 months.

    The county administrator coordinates and directs county government’s day-to-day operations and manages the budget under the governance of the five-member Board of Supervisors. Conn’s decision to resign was disclosed in May after she and the board met in a session closed to the public.

    The Board of Supervisors last year selected Conn from a pool of about 20 applicants – a contrast to the eight now vying to replace her.

    Referring to a “negative” environment surrounding the Board of Supervisors in recent months as they quarrel and take public criticism, Gray wondered why anyone wants to be Adams County’s chief administrator. “I wouldn’t leave my job to come here into this,” he said.

    Prior to Conn’s hiring, board attorney Scott Slover was appointed briefly as administrator when Washington resigned March 2025. She had occupied the position held on an interim basis for a year by Adams County Chancery Clerk Brandi Lewis while supervisors stalled in finding an administrator. This came after the board ousted Angie King in January 2022. King was appointed in 2020, when Joe Murray retired after 10 years as county administrator.

  • City Officials Hear Complaints About North Natchez Park Conditions

    NATCHEZ, Miss. – The mayor and aldermen fielded complaints Tuesday about conditions at North Natchez Park and its historic renovated Youth Center.

    “We’ve been neglecting the park for a while now,” said Alderman Billie Joe Frazier. While he insisted the Youth Center “is in shambles,” Mayor Dan Gibson said he received “a glowing review” from those who’ve recently used it.

    Discussions about North Natchez Park were prompted by grievances initiated by James Jones during Tuesday’s meeting of the mayor and Board of Aldermen. Complaints about park conditions come three years after the city renovated its Youth Center at a cost of nearly $1 million. New playground equipment was also installed at the park located by Martin Luther King and Wilson roads.

    However, Frazier and Alderman Valencia Hall expressed concerns about water-plumbing problems, overgrown weeds and grass there. While Gibson said city recreation staffers will assess the park conditions, he noted maintenance can be performed only as the budget and priorities allow. 

    North Natchez Park’s amenities include the new playground along with tennis and basketball courts, a large pavilion for gatherings and the renovated Youth Center. That century-old structure has been listed by the state Department of Archives & History as a Mississippi Landmark also known as the Anchorage Farm House.

    The park site was originally part of Anchorage Plantation, then sold as a livestock farm to Melchior Beltzhoover around 1915, according to historical accounts compiled by city officials and state historians. The structure was likely built then to serve as the farm manager’s residence.

    “The circa 1915 farm house is the last known (existing) building of the Anchorage Stock Farm, a cattle farm that pioneered Mississippi’s modern cattle and dairy industry,” states a Department of Archives & History report.

    “Beltzhoover was pivotal in the early promotion of cattle farming in the state. In 1922, Beltzhoover’s son inherited the Anchorage Stock Farm. Due to the close proximity to Natchez, and trying to mimic the success of Brookhaven’s dairy industry, Beltzhoover spearheaded a movement to open a creamery for the city. While this creamery venture didn’t come to fruition, it did spark statewide interest and increased local dialogue in regard to the benefits of cattle and dairy farming. Beltzhoover eventually lost the farm in 1936, but it continued in operation until 1958.”

    The park site became the property of the Natchez-Adams County school system in 1959 to build the old Anchorage school campus for Blacks. In 1974, the property was divided – giving the city control of the park property and Youth Center building with the school board maintaining the school building. During segregation, the park and former farm house served as a popular gathering spot for the Black community that was barred from other public venues. The building over time fell into disrepair until its 2023 restoration.

    For more information and photos of the North Natchez Youth Center building, log onto the Department of Archives & History’s website:

    www.apps.mdah.ms.gov/upload/rptdocs/prop/2145910970/ML%20Anchorage%20Farm%20House%20report%2001-08-2024.pdf

  • Congressional funds in the works for Canal Street bridge

    NATCHEZ, Miss. — The city’s congressional lobbyist said legislation is “in the hopper” for the U.S. Congress to give Natchez about $2.4 million to rebuild the Canal Street bridge. Noting “it’s not a done deal yet,” Gregg Harper said the allocation still has more steps to take before the House and Senate send it to the president for his approval.

    The mid-1900s bridge is deteriorating and projected to have only about four years left of life.

    While Congress and the Mississippi Legislature earlier this year provided Natchez $2.5 million to replace the bridge, about $3.3 million more is needed, according to estimates provided to city officials. The old bridge is near the Natchez visitors center on Canal Street, a key transportation artery for the city. 

    Meeting Tuesday with Natchez Mayor Dan Gibson and Board of Aldermen, Harper expressed hope Congress will provide the additional dollars.

    A former U.S. congressman who represented Natchez for 10 years, Harper has been the city’s hired legislative lobbyist since leaving the House in 2019. He’s helped the city get funds from both Congress and the state Legislature. That includes the $2 million Congress appropriated in February and the $500,000 the Legislature earmarked in April for the Canal Street bridge. “I think there’s more to come,” Harper said Tuesday.  

    Repairs to the old bridge a year ago restored its capacity for buses and fire trucks, but Natchez officials continue to ban 18-wheelers from the span. All large vehicles were prohibited from crossing the much-traveled bridge in December 2023, when inspectors discovered corroded undergirdings that rendered it unsafe for heavy weight.

    “The bridge is expected to last another four years while we raise remaining funds, “ Gibson said in April.