NATCHEZ — For years, local elected officials have gone to Washington, D.C., to lobby for Adams County’s causes.

Now, they’re hoping Washington, D.C., will come to them.

Earlier this week the Adams County Board of Supervisors gave Supervisor Mike Lazarus the go-ahead to start working and planning with other local officials and business people a weekend in which Natchez will play host to the area’s congressional delegation.

Lazarus first suggested the idea earlier this year after the rest of the supervisors attended the National Association of Counties conference in Washington, D.C. He didn’t attend.

“When you go to Washington to see (the congressmen), you get to see them, but every other county from Mississippi is up there,” Lazarus said. “This (plan) is something where you get to spend some more time with them.”

The idea, Lazarus said, is to host the congressmen and senators — and their spouses — locally for a weekend. It will be a retreat for the officials, but it will also serve the county’s ends, he said.

“Any problems we have, we can show them firsthand; we can show them the site ourselves,” Lazarus said.

“We have got a lot of growth going on, and we hope to continue to grow, and they need to come and see what is going on. I think this is a good time to have them come and see what is going on.”

Natchez-Adams County Chamber President Debbie Hudson said such a trip would help keep the area in the congressional delegation’s consciousness.

The retreat would also show the delegation progress that is being made, she said.

“They need to see the port,” Hudson said. “They were here two years ago, but they need to come and look at our big difference.”

In addition to helping demonstrate how federal money is and can be used, the retreat could have other benefits, Lazarus said.

“We need to tour the port with them, talk about the prospects we have on the table now and see if they have any leads for us,” he said.

Hudson is working with Lazarus to coordinate a meeting with other local leaders to get the plans for the retreat moving.

Lazarus said he would like to host the retreat sometime during the fall.

“A lot of them have been here before, but I don’t know if they have been able to spend any quality time here,” he said.