NATCHEZ — A public hearing is set for 5:30 Monday to adopt the budget for the upcoming fiscal year.

The budget is still currently being finalized and will be until the meeting.

Mayor Jake Middleton said the budget was worked on diligently until late Thursday evening and will be attacked again Monday morning.

“It’s going to be tight,” Middleton said.

That’s even with the 5 percent cuts the city asked each department head to make.

“We’re trying to get a little bit of overage back to where we are level,” he said.

One thing Middleton said would help the budget is county cooperation in recreation.

He said he has requested a two-mil increase in the county’s financial participation, which is $360,000.

“We put about $1 million or so in recreation, the county puts in $50,000,” Middleton said. “If you live in the county and play at Duncan park, you pay the same as those who live in the city and pay taxes to play.”

If the county were to meet Middleton’s request, he said the city would take responsibility for the county’s parks and ball fields.

“I thought this would be a good way for the county to pitch in,” he said.

Especially with Rentech coming, the sale of the hospital and CCA coming online, Middleton said it’s a good opportunity for the county to jump in.

“They’ll be getting a nice little windfall,” Middleton said.

He said the city cannot continue to, essentially, solely support recreation.

“We just can’t continue to pay for all the recreation,” Middleton said. “That’s just the bottom line. We’re not going to be able to fund recreation for everybody without the county pitching in and helping us a bit.”

The request, he said, has already been made to the county and he will continue to pursue it.

“I’m not going to give up hope on it,” Middleton said.