Forrest Foster

Foster said Natchez has a bright future, but he said the city must set long-range goals in order to attract people to Natchez, especially young people.

Foster said, if elected, he will take the business-minded approach to city government he has learned while being a business owner.

“The city is a business any way you look at it,” he said. “You have to know when to spend money and not to spend money.”

Foster said in his 36 years as a car salesman, he has learned how to work well and communicate with people.

“It’s very important to be able to meet and greet people,” he said. “I think if you have to sell your city to someone, I would be a candidate.”

Foster said he wants to see the city tackle crime and build its Neighborhood Watch programs. He said the city needs to clean up its streets of crime and make the city more presentable to tourists, as well as residents.

“I want everybody in Natchez to be proud of Natchez,” he said.

Recreation is a top issue for Foster, he said. Foster said getting a recreation complex in place will attract the city’s young people to stay in Natchez and bring new families to the city, too.

“We’re so far behind on recreation, it’s not even funny,” he said.

Foster said he has seen the economic impact of large tournaments while he has traveled around the country, and he said the city and county need to come together immediately and find funding for the recreation complex.

“There’s always room for improvement anywhere,” he said. “I think if I’m elected, I can see some things through to fruition that we need to get done.”