NATCHEZ &8212; Circuit Judge Forrest A. Johnson ruled, overall, in favor of the city in the appeal by a group of citizens against the city Friday.

The appeal addressed the sale and use of the old Natchez Pecan Shelling Company. The plaintiffs, among other aspects, argued that the city government broke the law when it sold the land below its appraised value.

State law allows governments to sell land below its appraised value if the benefits from the sale more than justify the selling of the property, former city attorney Walter Brown said recently.

The developers plan to use the land to build condominiums.

On Friday, Johnson disagreed. He ruled the city mayor and board of aldermen broke no state or constitutional laws. He also ruled the meetings were legal and the &8220;price for the property was reasonable, given all of the factors considered, and within the authority of the mayor and board to accept.&8221;

Johnson did rule against the developers, citing plans to refurbish current public sidewalks and &8220;securing&8221; them at night.

Johnson ruled the general public must have access to the public sidewalk.

The ruling finishes by stating, &8220;All remaining issues not specifically addressed by the court are resolved against the appellants and in favor of the mayor and board of aldermen.&8221;

Either side may appeal the case to the Mississippi Supreme Court.

Brown, who represented the city in this case, said he was pleased with the ruling.

&8220;I&8217;m hoping this will end the matter for all parties,&8221; Brown said. &8220;We&8217;re just pleased that we&8217;re at the point where we can proceed.&8221;

Brown said he thought the developers would probably move forward with the project. Construction was put on hold pending a ruling.

Gwen Ball was one of the plaintiffs in the case.

&8220;We respectfully disagree with the court&8217;s decision, and we will now consider the legal options available to us,&8221; Ball said Friday.

When asked if the plaintiffs would appeal the case to the Mississippi Supreme Court, Ball declined to comment.