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Senate Bill 2189 specifies $500,000 for helping Natchez pay the costs associated with the demolition and reconstruction of the Canal Street Bridge, which is deteriorating and projected to have only about four years left of life.

“If that bridge is closed, it would handicap all of us – the city and the county,” Gibson said earlier this year. “We can’t afford to let it be closed. We need to be proactive.”

“Keeping Canal Street open is vital to our local economy, and the replacement of this bridge will ensure the vitality of our city for years to come.”

Construction costs for a new bridge has been projected to be nearly $6 million.

Repairs to the old, 1900s 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.

Records vary on the bridge’s construction date,  but it ranges from the 1940s to the 1960s.

In a separate project, Gibson and city aldermen have been trying since 2020 to decoratively illuminate the Mississippi River bridges that connect Natchez and Vidalia.

The bill the state Legislature passed Thursday does say Natchez’s $500,000 is earmarked for “city infrastructure, including, but not limited to, bridge lighting,” but doesn’t specify it’s for the Natchez-Vidalia bridge. 

The Legislature in 2022 allocated $500,000 for illuminating the bridge with aesthetic lighting, but more money is needed to install the wiring and bulbs.

Senate Bill 2189 funds Mississippi’s Local Improvements Projects Fund with $253 million for various cities, counties, and organizations throughout the state. While $1 million is earmarked for Natchez, no money is specifically allocated for Adams County.

NATCHEZ, Miss. – Work will begin soon to repair erosion that threatens Canal Street by the visitors center and could’ve caused that section to be closed to traffic for several months, said Natchez Mayor Dan Gibson.

Earlier assessments raised concerns that the busy thoroughfare could be blocked for six months, he said, but the Mississippi Department of Transportation has determined the erosion-control project can be done without such an imposition on traffic.

Meeting with the Natchez Board of Aldermen, the mayor noted the state owns the land where the erosion is occurring by the visitors center’s colonnade and Canal Street bridge. MDOT will be in charge of the project paid for with state funds. Work could begin in a couple of weeks as MDOT dumps riprap to curb the erosion on land that slopes into the deep ravine by the visitors center and bridge that crosses over a railroad track.

The erosion peril is one of “two very close calls” the past two years raising fears that Canal Street could be blocked off for traffic, Gibson said. The deteriorating Canal Street bridge needs to be replaced. Engineers say it only has about four years of life left.

The city last month did get $2 million from the U.S. Congress for building a replacement, but about $4 million more is needed, according to Gibson, who noted the additional dollars are being sought from Congress and the Mississippi Legislature.

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.

Repairs to the mid-1900s bridge restored its capacity for buses and fire trucks, but Natchez officials continue to ban 18-wheelers from the span. It’ll be impassable to all vehicles by 2030.

NATCHEZ, Miss. – The dispute that’s been displayed the past two months by city aldermen and Mayor Dan Gibson in appointing  the new Natchez police chief continued Tuesday, a day after a 4-3 vote that had the mayor breaking a tie to select Lee Best to lead the Natchez Police Department.

Gibson broke another tie Tuesday as the three dissenting aldermen tried to appoint long-serving NPD Commander Justin Jones as assistant police chief. They’ve argued that Best doesn’t have enough experience at the NPD to be chief.

In voting against making Jones an assistant police chief, Gibson said there wasn’t enough discussion among aldermen about giving him a position currently not in the NPD hierarchy.

Best joined the NPD in 2024 and has been the chief enforcement officer of city regulations for maintaining private properties. He’s considered by the mayor and three aldermen the most-qualified of four candidates interviewed Monday in sessions that aldermen closed to the public.

In supporting Best’s appointment, Gibson said: “We have an individual who’s served this community for many, many years.” The mayor said he’s “seen that work in this community expressed in his work ethic and in the way he respects and works with everyone regardless of their background and regardless of their color.”

Best worked for the Adams County Sheriff’s Office before becoming a Natchez police officer.

Dissenting aldermen appeared to favor Jones, who has more NPD experience than Best. 

Gibson  on Monday joined Aldermen Valencia Hall, Sarah Carter Smith and Curtis Moroney in voting for Best. Aldermen Billie Joe Frazier and Ben Davis – former Natchez police officers – were joined by Alderman Felicia Bridgewater Irving voting against Best.

Irving complained that appointing a NPD newcomer as chief is “a slap in the face” to the more experienced Natchez police officers bidding for the job. 

Meeting Tuesday, aldermen split along the same lines when Frazier attempted to get Jones appointed assistant police chief. While Gibson said he has the “utmost respect” for Jones and his 26 years at the NPD, he broke Tuesday’s 3-3 tie to sink his appointment as assistant chief.

The mayor has been thrust into making tie-breaking votes throughout the police chief search process that began in January, when Green announced her plans to retire.

Gibson and aldermen closed the public out of their meeting Tuesday to discuss Best’s salary.

Green, appointed in 2023 as Natchez’ first female police chief, has said she’s ready for the pension-paying retirement she’s earned after nearly 29 years with the NPD and Adams County Sheriff’s Office.

NATCHEZ, Miss. – Adams County supervisors on Monday concurred with Natchez Mayor Dan Gibson’s request to honor former mayor Butch Brown by asking the state Legislature to name the Seargent Prentiss bridge crossing Liberty Road after him.

Gibson, who met with the county board, also got supervisors to back efforts to seek state and federal funds to replace the city’s aging Canal Street bridge, which the mayor said could be impassable by 2030 because of its deteriorating condition.

Brown, who died in 2023, served as Natchez mayor for three terms. Since the bridge is owned by the state, naming it after the former mayor requires legislative approval. The state Legislature is scheduled to end its annual session in early April. 

Brown helped design the decorative span crossing Liberty Road with its black wrought-iron railings and ornate columns. He served as executive director of the Mississippi Department of Transportation in between his stints as Natchez mayor.

“It’s fitting that we honor him by naming the bridge after him,” Gibson told the Adams

County Board of Supervisors.

Getting the state Legislature to do this requires a formal request by the county board along with the Natchez Board of Aldermen.

For replacing the Canal Street bridge, the city last month got $2 million from the U.S. Congress. However, about $4 million more is needed, according to Gibson, who noted the funds are being sought from Congress and the Mississippi Legislature.

“We still have more to raise, but $2 million is a fantastic start,” Gibson said  in February when President Trump signed the congressional appropriation. “Keeping Canal Street open is vital to our local economy, and the replacement of this bridge will ensure the vitality of our city for years to come.”

NATCHEZ, Miss. – Adams County officials on Monday reviewed the impact of Sunday night’s storm that downed trees and caused power outages.

Nearly 1,000 Adams County utility customers were still without electricity as of late Monday afternoon, according to PowerOutage.com. About 600 were in the rural areas served by Southwest Mississippi Electric Power Association while almost 400 were connected to Entergy.

 Broken trees were blocking various Adams County thoroughfares, including Greenfield, Montgomery and Steam Plant roads, according to reports posted by the Adams County Sheriff’s Office. A truck rammed into a fallen tree on Steam Plant Road. Two passengers were taken to the hospital. A tree fell on a Mullins Road residence, but no serious injuries were reported by the ACSO.

For future storms, Adams County Emergency Management Director Brad Bradford urged residents to subscribe to the HyperReach early warning system that automatically phones them when bad weather approaches. Since this free service directly notifies people of any weather threats, it’s more reliable than malfunctioning tornado sirens located throughout Natchez and Adams County. Bradford noted seven of the 18 siren towers remain out of order.

NATCHEZ, Miss. – American Cruise Lines is finalizing plans to build its Natchez dock along thebein Mississippi River this year and give the city $500,000 to enhance Natchez Under-the-Hill.

Meeting Tuesday with the Natchez Board of Aldermen, Mayor Dan Gibson said ACL is spending more than $4 million to build the long-planned facility for its riverboats to dock. The company’s additional $500,000 could be combined with other funds the city gets to beautify the riverfront along Silver Street, Gibson said.

ACL, which leases the city-owned riverboat landing at the end of Silver Street, has been bringing its riverboats to Natchez since 2012. It docks more than 100 times annually with about 20,000 passengers, according to statistics provided by the company.

ACL’s wharf has been on the drawing board since 2020. Viking – the other cruise line that brings riverboat visitors to Natchez – has also had plans to build a separate dock on Silver Street.

ACL’s dock is being built at the family-owned company’s expense, but Gibson has said it’ll be available for the general public’s use to view the river and sunsets.

The Mississippi River mooring facility’s design and placement are subject for review and approval by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which regulates river structures, the Mississippi Department of Archives & History and the Natchez Preservation Commission, which evaluate alterations to historic sites such as the Natchez Under-the-Hill area.

ACL’s fleet of ships includes American Melody, American Serenade, American Symphony, American Splendor and American Heritage. The Connecticut-based company pays Natchez a per-passenger fee each time it docks in the city.

Gibson also noted Tuesday that work is nearly complete to rebuild the Silver Street retaining wall. The structure near The Camp restaurant and Under-the-Hill Saloon was deteriorating.

NATCHEZ, Miss. – Mayor Dan Gibson wants Natchez and Adams County officials to join together to reappraise properties that he said have been overvalued for taxes.

“It’s very apparent that these appraisals have been too much,” said Gibson, who maintained properties could have been valued without sufficient information or inspection by county-hired appraisers.

Meeting Tuesday with the mayor, the Natchez Board of Aldermen did vote to request Adams County officials provide details about the process and formula used in determining the market value of properties that are taxed.

This comes as Natchez-Adams County property owners have been hit with larger-than-usual tax bills that Gibson said could be based on erroneous appraisals.

He encouraged those who believe they’ve been overtaxed to get their properties revalued in an attempt to persuade Adams County officials to reduce the tax bills.

“If you feel like you’ve been improperly treated, you might want to consider looking at an appraisal – getting one done – and presenting that to the tax assessor,” Gibson said.

He noted he successfully got his property taxes reduced in the past on a parcel he owns after showing the county assessor the value is less than what the county appraiser determined.

Adams County officials run the property tax operations for both the city and county, but “if this continues to be such an outrageous inflation of values, (Natchez aldermen could) consider asking the county to go in with us on a reappraisal of (all) properties,” Gibson said.

In the meantime, the city board wants details from county officials on how the property values were done by the county-hired appraisal company headed by Wayne Herring of Tylertown.

Gibson said appraisals could’ve been done simply by “drive-by” inspections of properties, and “sometimes they don’t use recent sales data in the real estate market.”

 “It’s a deterrent in living here when the taxes are so high,” Gibson said. “I am very empathetic to the situation.”

The tax bills that landholders received last month caused sticker shock for many in Natchez-Adams County. Amounts owed increased by 30 percent from last year’s bills, according to some accounts reported by taxpayers. The money is the combined total of taxes owed to Natchez, Adams County and the Natchez-Adams School District.

A state-mandated reassessment process has resulted in property values rising due to inflation and other contributing factors, according to what’s been reported to the Adams County Board of Supervisors. 

The deadline to pay property taxes normally due Feb. 1 was extended to March 3 because of last month’s ice storm. 

However, any challenge can still be pursued thereafter to get individual tax bills reduced, according to Adams County board attorney Scott Slover.

Property owners trying to get their taxes lowered can appeal to county Tax Assessor Larry Hughes. If he agrees a particular parcel was overvalued, he can recommend the Board of Supervisors reduce the taxes owed. The tax assessor’s office telephone number at the Adams County Courthouse is 601 442-6732.

To view Adams County property tax information that includes how much is owed for each parcel, go to:

www.deltacomputersystems.com/ms/ms01/plinkquerym.html

Property values are calculated based on several factors, including how the property is used, its construction and its current real-estate market worth. The Mississippi Department of Revenue requires counties to reassess property values every four years to reflect changes in the market and ensure tax equity.