On Tuesday, the six aldermen of the City of Natchez have an opportunity to show that they are truly interested in the public trust with which they are charged, as well as good stewards of the limited resources of our shrinking community. The lame duck Mayor Butch Brown, has announced that he intends to fill at least four of six open positions on the so-called CVB Commission that presides over approximately $1.9 million dollars returned by the State of Mississippi to the Commission annually from heads on bed taxes and the like. The Commission is a separate and distinct political subdivision from the City of Natchez, and can largely operate itself independently from interference from the city.

Why does the mayor want a new commission? The mayor’s stated reason for filling the positions is to “pay bills,” which is a provably false reason, as bills have been paid regularly by the recently deposed Commission. So what, you may ask is really going on?

Well, if one assumes roughly 30,000 overnight visitors to Natchez in a given year, a $130 hotel room translates into around $4 million dollars pumped into the local economy. In 2015, the average convention was roughly 320 people, and there were about 92 of them (“bookings”). Were these bookings spread across the multiple hotels we have in this city and its neighbor, Vidalia? The research at this time does not appear to indicate so and appears to show instead a systematic and concerted effort to steer business to one hotel, the Natchez Grand Hotel. Let’s say that a very conservative figure of $7,500 per booking is made by these groups. This only represents about $23.50 per person, or $700,000 annually. Then there is the question of feeding and entertaining the visitors. Who participates in this for profit venture? Right now, it looks like it is largely the Grand Hotel, despite language in the contracts that states that local vendors are to be shown preference.

Last week, the state auditor was to be called in to examine the books, presumptively the books of the City of Natchez Tourism Department, as well as the CVB Commission. Tuesday is an opportunity for the aldermen to do the right thing and slow down the Butch Brown train and demand that transparency and answers are forthcoming before a new round of hide the ball and rug sweep and whitewash take place. Aldermen should just say “No” to the mayor’s efforts to continue the status quo, and affect the city for years in the future.

 

Paul Benoist,

Natchez