The Natchez Visitor Reception Center got a checkup this week, but the diagnosis is mixed.

National Park Service and city officials examined the building for problems Tuesday.

“We don’t have a single verdict on this,” Tourism Director Walter Tipton said Friday. “We’ve got several things we’re doing down there.”

The biggest step is to fill in a sinkhole on the west side of the building, near the bookstore, to keep water from collecting.

“We also inspected some of the air system, and we’re going to have (the manufacturer) inspect it for us on an annual basis,” Tipton said.

Another change is in housekeeping. The visitors’ center plans to replace their current vacuums with ones containing HEPA filters, which trap particles better, he said.

The National Park Service officials, three of whom were public health officials, looked at the environmental test results, too, he said. The results of the tests were mixed, according to NPS officials at the time. The air passed, but surface swabs came up with higher levels of bacteria, fungi or yeast.

“They’re reading the same thing we are,” Tipton said. “The air quality in the building is as good or better than the outside air quality. It’s not anything obvious to address other than doing the things we’re doing better.

“The general consensus was better maintenance and identifying potential sources of leaks and making sure we get those sealed up.”

The carpet in the center’s bookstore, what some say is the origin of the problem, has been replaced with tile, as has the carpet surrounding the bookstore.

Several employees reportedly complained of health problems, and one was out sick for an extended period of time. City officials said at the time there was no way to link her illness to the center’s environment.

A section of drywall in the bookstore now needs replacing, the tour Tuesday showed.

“There’s some drywall at the very top of the bookstore showing a little water mark, not mold,” Tipton said. “It’s from a prior leak that probably happened a couple of years ago. We’re going to look at replacing it, but we’re doing that more for the psychological benefit than we are because we feel there’s a problem with mold.”

Tipton said he was satisfied with Tuesday’s examination of the building.

“The people we’re bringing in to look at all this are professional heath inspectors,” he said. “We feel we’re getting good advice from them. They assured us they felt like there was no risk to the general public.”