NATCHEZ, Miss. – The city is expected to have $2 million in hand by August as it starts improving Natchez’ six municipal parks, with the bulk of that money going to renovate the Duncan Park golf clubhouse and the North Natchez youth center.
“It will take a few months and even into next year. But the important thing is we’re starting,” Mayor Dan Gibson said of the parks project.
The Board of Aldermen agreed Tuesday to move forward on borrowing $2 million through bonds. While the list of park improvements has a projected cost of about $1.75 million, aldermen decided to add another $250,000 for city street resurfacing and other structural repairs.
Improving city parks has been a high priority for Gibson since he took office in July. The mayor said the city can handle the additional debt load and will not need to increase taxes for this.
The list of park projects includes spending $500,000 for restoring the deteriorating Duncan Park Golf Course clubhouse and $365,000 for the dilapidated North Natchez youth center. New tennis courts, playground equipment and splash pads are also among the recreational offerings to be in the works. Gibson said park restroom improvements are already beginning.
While not a city park, the Natchez National Historical Park is listed as a high priority by the Biden administration for $540,000 to preserve and develop the Forks of the Road, the site of a former Natchez slave market. The U.S Department of the Interior announced Monday that it wants Congress to allocate the funds as part of national parks’ “initiatives that advance racial equity and tell the stories of historically underrepresented communities and the struggle for civil rights.”
Natchez officials have scheduled a June 18 ceremony to mark the donation of nearly three acres of city-owned land for the National Park Service to make part of the Forks of the Road historic site by St. Catherine Street. Gibson said U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker is expected to be there.
Gibson also said $2 million has been earmarked for Morgantown Road in proposed legislation introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. Natchez and Adams County leaders have been seeking funds to upgrade the road that’s considered dangerous and prone to rain-caused flooding.
Funds for Forks of the Road and Morgantown Road must pass through the congressional appropriations process in the coming months before the federal government can actually provide the money.
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