Natchez &8212; Developer Charles Cato expects to have a new casino up and running in Natchez next year.

The Mississippi Gaming Commission on Thursday approved the final site plans for Cato&8217;s Emerald Star Casino, which would be located just south of the Mississippi River bridge in Natchez.

&8220;I can&8217;t tell you how happy I am to be coming to Natchez,&8221; Cato said. &8220;We are definitely coming. It&8217;s been a long road to get here.&8221;

The approvals also mean Cato&8217;s financing is in place for the project. Cato said his total investment would be about $70 million, including his planned purchase of the Ramada Inn Hilltop.

Cato said he expected to close on the hotel deal in December and plans to renovate the hotel&8217;s existing L-shaped 100-unit building into 70 new rooms.

The Emerald Star development would bring about 400 jobs to Natchez, Cato said, including the casino and hotel.

Cato has already purchased The Briars bed and breakfast, where he also plans to do some renovations.

The casino boat would have 1,020 slot machines, 19 tables and six poker tables.

Cato said Natchez is ready for a second casino development.

&8220;The Gaming Commission has wanted a second casino for some time,&8221; Cato said. &8220;Natchez has needed a second casino.&8221;

Natchez was actually the first city approved for a gaming project in the mid-1990s, but other cities had projects up and running before Lady Luck Casino opened its doors in Natchez.

Lady Luck has since been sold to Isle of Capri, which operates the casino and hotel in Natchez.

The Gaming Commission&8217;s approval means Cato can proceed with development and construction.

Emerald Star started the approval process again because it restructured its company and wasn&8217;t going to meet the two-year deadline from receipt of the original site plan approval, Jackson gaming attorney Scott Andress told the Clarion-Ledger this week.