NATCHEZ — Natchez Convention Center officials said this week that during 2016 more than 29,000 people attended events at the center, resulting in a more than $9 million direct economic impact.

Convention Center General Manager Walter Tipton and New Orleans Hotel Consultants President Warren Reuther, whose company manages the center, presented an end-of-the-year report to the Natchez Board of Aldermen at the board’s Tuesday meeting.

The report outlines the growth the convention center has since 2007.

The report shows that in 2016, the center hosted 115 events, a 259-percent increase from the 32 events the center hosted in 2007. The center had 9,735 attendees in 2007 and 29,191 attendees in 2016.

The report indicates those numbers have shown a steady increase since 2007.

The economic impact is calculated using the $180 per day spending figure consistent with the state department of tourism and the Mississippi Development Authority. Events include those hosted at the convention center and the adjacent hotel, the Natchez Grand Hotel, which opened in 2007.The center’s economic impact is also illustrated in the report by the increase of the tourism taxes in the city. While overall sales tax collections were down, tourism tax collections mostly increased in 2016.

Reuther said the center had a very successful year and commended Tricentennial Director Jennifer Ogden Combs and her staff for creating a yearlong celebration that attracted conventions and events to the center.

Reuther also mentioned the capital improvements the company has made to the center, noting that the city continues to pay only $20,000 monthly for the management of the center, the same amount since 2007.

Capital improvements noted in the report include replacing signage of the Canal Street side of the building, interior painting, sound equipment purchases and the repair or replacement of catering, staging and other equipment.

Tipton also gave the board an overview of conventions booked for 2017, including a 600-person gathering of the Mississippi Speech-Language Hearing Association and a multistate meeting of Rotary Club members.

Reuther said the convention center is vital to Natchez tourism and continued growth of the city.

“The convention center is the locomotive that runs the hospitality industry,” he said. “You have everything everybody else wants. … You just need to market it.”