NATCHEZ — The boat that will house the Grand Soleil casino should be pulling into town in about three weeks.

But it won’t be ready for the big spenders just yet, General Manager Wendy Grandin said Wednesday. Interior work to prepare the boat’s three stories, slot machines, tables and poker room will continue until the casino’s May or June 2008 opening.

Grandin spoke to the Rotary Club, showing slides of work on two retaining walls and drawings of future plans.

The $80 million project includes a retaining wall with five to seven inches of cement that runs 50 feet high and 1,400 feet long, holding back the bluff’s river sand.

“The retaining walls are built to safety factors that far exceed the safety analysis,” Grandin said.

A second, lower retaining wall will be 30 feet high and 1,200 feet long. As work on the site continues, rail service on the Canadian National rail line will stop periodically to accommodate construction.

Work on the former Ramada Inn on top of the hill is also moving along, Grandin said. When the new hotel is complete it will include 124 rooms, three large meeting facilities, a bar, a restaurant, a sweets shop, an outdoor bar and a pool.

Below, the casino boat will be 375 feet long and 66 feet wide. The height up to the smokestacks will be 70 feet.

The land-based portion of the casino will include a two-story building with a buffet to seat 300 people and a gift shop.