The Natchez Pecan Factory was torn down because of public safety concerns, city officials say.

But what the building has turned into is more of a concern than the original structure, Natchez resident Jim Sanders said at the board of aldermen meeting Tuesday.

Sanders said he was especially concerned about a cistern located on the property, passing around before and after pictures.

Before the demolition of the building, the water-filled cistern’s opening was fairly small and topped with a metal cover.

After the demolition, it expanded into a gaping hole.

“If we didn’t have a safety concern before, we certainly do now,” Sanders said. “The caution tape with blown-over barrels (marking off the area) is not doing the job. It’s a very dangerous situation.”

City Attorney Everett Sanders said he wrote a letter to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History and the attorney general’s office mentioning the cistern.

MDAH issued a restraining order when Mayor Phillip West issued an executive order to demolish the state landmark earlier this month.

“Ordinarily, we would consider (the situation) a hazard, but because of the restraining order, there’s nothing we can do,” Everett Sanders said.

The issue of the restraining order is currently in court, and Sanders said he would ask the judge to consider the danger of the situation during the proceedings.

Sanders said it was less a question of who would be liable if anything happened but one of safety and concern for the community.

Alderwoman Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis said she would like the city to be able to do something about the rubble and the cistern.

“It’s a situation we’re trying to handle as elected officials, and it’s being stopped (by MDAH),” she said.

In other business:

4The board approved the sole bid of $7,500 to refinish tennis courts.

4On a motion from Mathis, the board voted to ask the city attorney to look at the possibility of creating a personnel policy restricting department heads to speak on issues only as individuals, not on behalf of the city.

After the meeting, Mathis said the issue came up after Tourism Director Walter Tipton expressed opinions at a county supervisors meeting regarding potential correctional facilities locating in the county.

“The board has not made a decision one way or the other, whether or not to support the jails,” Mathis said.

4The board voted to ask the city attorney to investigate the possibility of bringing the Natchez Housing Authority under the city government as a department. They also asked him to find out what it would take for the city to develop its own housing authority.

4The board will hold a work session 4 p.m. March 6. No board meeting will be held March 13 due to a scheduling conflict.