NATCHEZ &8212; About 30 Natchez residents voiced their opinions on the Forks of the Road slavery site Thursday night in the first of three public meetings.

The site is currently owned by the city, and the study will determine whether or not the site meets National Park Service criteria. If it does, the Park Service may consider acquiring the land.

No decision can be made until the study is completed and made available to the public and public comments are considered.

Representatives from Mangi Environmental, the group conducting the boundary study, presented the study procedures and heard comments from the public.

Everyone who spoke emphasized the need for the site to tell the history of the slaves who worked and were bought and sold in Natchez.

Natchez resident Neil Varnell said he would eventually like to see the site in the hands of the National Park Service.

&8220;The Forks of the Road applies not only to Natchez,&8221; Varnell said. &8220;It was part of the development of the Deep South cotton kingdom, and I think the National Park Service can give it its broadest interpretation.&8221;

Friends of the Forks of the Road spokesman Ser Sesh Ab Heter C.M. Boxley said the site was vital to balance the white history exemplified by antebellum houses and streets named after enslavers with the story of how black slaves worked and helped build Natchez and the South.

Boxley also suggested the study look at two other areas not owned by the city that were part of the Forks of the Road trading site.

Natchez resident David Dreyer said he saw the site as an opportunity to achieve racial reconciliation.

&8220;The Forks of the Road has a lot to tell,&8221; Dreyer said. &8220;And telling the story with all its warts does not require the demonization of the ancestors of some of those who live here,&8221; Dreyer said.

Several residents said they thought the site was an opportunity to look at the past to understand today and prevent similar situations in the future.

The next step in the process is to make a preliminary assessment of the boundary criteria and how it might be managed. After that, the researchers will hold another public meeting to share their findings. Then, a full study, including archeological and environmental evaluations will be completed. After that, a third public meeting will be held to obtain more feedback before a final draft is submitted to the park service and the city.

Jim Mangi, president of the company, said he thought the study would take roughly a year, after which a decision would be made by the city and the park service.