The year 2006 brought unfinished business from 2005, new ideas, controversy and some painful goodbyes.

Development &8212; or plans for development &8212; topped the year off again, with a new casino on the horizon and more talk of Rentech and condos.

Controversies kept the town talking, from the indictment of an elected official to the firing of a city department head, and in the parish, an abrupt end to a year-old voter fraud case.

Now, we&8217;ll all enter 2007 with projects left to complete, hope left to ride on and fond memories of those who won&8217;t be coming with us.

Roth Hill land leased to Lane Co.

In what Mayor Phillip West called &8220;a difficult decision,&8221; the board of aldermen voted in December to lease the land under Roth Hill to Lane Company for casino development.

The company&8217;s proposal was one of two the board reviewed, both of which proposed a riverfront development, including a casino.

A public presentation of the proposals drew a packed house and split opinions on the board of aldermen.

Lane&8217;s proposal includes a simple park-like landscape on approximately half of the 5.3-acre site with the remainder devoted to the casino. The budget is $48 million.

The company said they would submit the required paperwork to the Mississippi Gaming Commission before 2007. And as soon as the commission gives them the go-ahead, they will begin the project.

Construction is scheduled for completion in November.

Lane was chosen over Natchez Riverfront Development Group, which proposed a $99 million project that included an amphitheatre, shops, a river walk and residential components.

Citizens who attended meetings on the proposals expressed concerns that one of the last remaining public views of the river should not turn into a casino development at all.

Signing of Rentech bill sets the stage for a new Natchez, leaders say

The state Legislature agreed to grant the Natchez Rentech project $15 million &8212; the full amount requested.

Local and state leaders gathered for a ceremonial signing of the bill in April.

The $15 million will go toward preliminary work at the Bellwood Country Club site near the port in Adams County.

The coal-to-liquid plant is an estimated $1-billion project that would employ 200 people and produce up to 10,000 barrels of clean alternative fuel each day.

The construction phase would employ another 1,500 temporarily.

&8220;No one knew better than I did how close we came to not having a bond bill in this session,&8221; Rep. Robert Johnson said. &8220;It took a lot of late hours, hard work and negotiating.

bill in this session,&8221; Rep. Robert Johnson said. &8220;It took a lot of late hours, hard work and negotiating.

&8220;Rentech is such a cutting-edge industry in America. And they have fallen in love with Natchez. I think their presence in Natchez will make other industries take notice.&8221;

The company reported late in 2006 that things are on-go for the Natchez project. The facility could be ready for production in 2011.

Circuit clerk charged with embezzlement of funds

A grand jury indictment served in September alleges Adams County Circuit Clerk M.L. &8220;Binkey&8221; Vines embezzled $228,760 in county money.

Vines turned himself in to the Adams County Sheriff&8217;s Office and was later released on bond. He faces 13 counts of embezzlement spanning several years in office.

Vines pleaded not guilty the day after his arrest.

The investigation and arrest was handled by agents from the Mississippi Office of the State Auditor and the Mississippi Attorney General&8217;s Office.

&8220;It is unfortunate when our public officials are accused of wrongdoing,&8221; Attorney General Jim Hood said. &8220;However, it is our duty to enforce the law.&8221;

Vines has been cited for bookkeeping problems in past state audits.

A discovery hearing in the case is set for January. Vines is continuing to work as circuit clerk.

Alcorn president dies

Alcorn State University President Clinton Bristow Jr., 57, died Aug. 19 while walking on the school track.

Several students found Bristow on the track and contacted campus security, who tried unsuccessfully to revive him.

He died of heart failure.

Bristow was president of Alcorn for 11 years and left behind a legacy of improvement. While he was leading the university graduation rates increased and construction projects began.

&8220;He was a great fellow, a great man and a great president,&8221; said Thomas Meredith, Commissioner of the Mississippi Institute for Higher Learning.

Local leaders said Bristow&8217;s death was a loss for all of Southwest Mississippi.

Bristow was responsible for developing the masters of business administration program now in Natchez, improving the racial makeup of the school and strengthening existing programs.

Pecan factory sold

The deed to the Natchez Pecan Shelling Company site was transferred in May to Ed Worley and Larry Brown for the development of condominiums.

But not before a group of citizens submitted a legal objection to the land sale during a special meeting of the Natchez Board of Alderman.

Natchez residents Rena Jean Schmieg, Gwen Ball and Nancy Shook filed objections to the sale of the pecan factory property.

The group alleges the sale violates the provision in the state constitution that prohibits

municipalities from selling land for less than its appraised value.

The lawsuit went before a local judge, who ruled in favor of the city.

The citizens &8212; a group that has since added and dropped members &8212; appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court. The Supreme Court will decide whether or not to hear the case.

Work on the site has been put on hold pending the outcome of the case.

City planner fired

City Planner Andrew L. Smith was fired from his job in June after a little less than a year in office.

&8220;I offered him the opportunity to resign, and he refused that offer in favor of termination,&8221; Mayor Phillip West said.

West said Smith&8217;s performance as a department head had been a concern for two months.

&8220;He has been under review in terms of his actions and interactions with other people he has to work with, including employees under his supervision,&8221; West said.

The firing came after the culmination of many events and complaints from staff and the public alike, West said.

Smith&8217;s time as city planner was marked with controversy, including timeliness of filing reports and hiring of new personnel.

Smith later filed an Equal Opportunity Employment Commission complaint, charging he was fired because of his race.

Both Smith and West are black.

The city recently hired a new city planner.

Ferriday suit comes to close after eight years

Checks for $325 were mailed out just before Christmas to Ferriday citizens involved in the 1999 water class action lawsuit.

Eight years ago, several citizens filed a lawsuit against the town after a 124-day boil water notice inconvenienced businesses and residents.

In 1999, citizens had to haul water from National Guard tanks to have drinking water. For three days at the start of the notice, Ferriday did not have any water service at all due to a complete shutdown of the town&8217;s water plant.

&8220;We had to haul water from outside to even be able to flush the toilets,&8221; said Tommy Massey, administrator of Heritage Manor Nursing Home at the time.

This December, the town held a press conference where Mayor Gene Allen was presented with a check for $443,176 and another for $137,500. The first check will be used to pay off the debt the town owes the U.S. Department of Agriculture for its water treatment plant.

The second check will reduce a loan from the USDA to improve the water plant.

Between 1,100 and 1,500 Ferriday residents received personal checks.

Plane crash kills three: Locals were headed to Waco meeting

Three Miss-Lou residents were killed in a plane crash at a Waco, Texas, airport Dec. 11.

Natchez pilot Justin Cardneaux was flying Barr Brown and Jerry Roberts to a business meeting in Waco when the Cessna 310 Cardneaux was flying crashed. The plane was in flames when Waco firefighters arrived.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

The National Transportation Safety Board released a preliminary report saying the pilot was warned of a low altitude just before the crash.

The deaths left three large holes in the Miss-Lou and touched many residents.

The pilot and his two passengers left behind families, friends, pet projects and civic roles.

Brown was an avid supporter of Trinity Episcopal Day School. He donated his time and money over the years.

Roberts was a member of the Concordia Parish School Board and a volunteer football coach at Vidalia High School.

Cardneaux taught flying lessons and participated in Angel Flights, transporting ill patients and their families to medical facilities.

Voter fraud charges dismissed

Three defendants in the Ferriday voter fraud case got word in August that charges against them had been dismissed.

Justin Conner, James Skipper and Emerson Slain were set to go to trial that month.

Slain said he was satisfied with the outcome of the case.

&8220;I stood steadfast to my innocence the whole time,&8221; he said. &8220;I&8217;m pleased with the decision of the Attorney General.&8221;

All seven original defendants were accused of tampering with absentee ballots in a 2004 election, which included the Ferriday mayor&8217;s race and school board elections.

The defendants were all well known in the community, and several held city-appointed positions.

Both local judges recused themselves from hearing the case, and the trial was eventually moved to Ouachita Parish.

The attorney general&8217;s office said the scope of the investigation might expand beyond the three whose charges were dropped, but no more arrests have been made.

Mayor proposes consolidation

Mayor Phillip West would like the city and the county to become one entity, he said in June.

Consolidating the city and the county would be much more effective than annexing a bit of land at a time, he said.

The city is running out of space, he said.

&8220;Annexation and/or consolidation needs to take place as soon as possible,&8221; West said.

&8220;I prefer consolidation.&8221;

County leaders later said they were not as welcoming of the idea, and feared county residents wouldn&8217;t want to pay city taxes.

In August, the mayor unveiled a draft plan for annexation, leaving aldermen momentarily speechless.

Annexing could happen faster than consolidating, West said, and could become a first step in the consolidation process.

At the time, West said he wanted aldermen to discuss the topic further at monthly work sessions.

No public discussion of the topic has dominated meetings since then.