NATCHEZ — Not only is Natchez missing $1.3 million for street overlays, but it’s also missing $500,000 for the Forks of the Road.

Both the $1.3 million and the $500,000 had to be applied for by the city, as it was appropriated to the Mississippi Development Authority.

It was only the legislature’s intent that the collective $1.8 million be given to Natchez.

The Forks of the Road money was never applied for.

And now that the city is working on getting the money, the specifications on how it has to be used have changed.

The letter of intent from the legislature said the $500,000 was to be used on “planning and other preliminary work related to the Historic Forks of the Road Project.”

City Grants Coordinator Brett Brinegar said, however, now the specifications state the money has to be used solely on construction.

And without a construction proposal, application for the money cannot be made.

The city partnered with Grover Mouton, director of the Regional Urban Design Center in the School of Architecture at Tulane University, to create a construction plan.

Mouton and Mayor Jake Middleton had planned on using the money to create that plan.

And now it’s gone.

Mouton said once he found out the money was only to be used for construction, he applied for a grant from the National Endowment for the Art’s design program.

The city was recently awarded the $20,000 matching grant, and Mouton said he is working on getting the match.

“That’s not going to be any trouble,” he said.

So the application for the $500,000 is pending the plans, and planning is pending a National Park Service boundary study of the Forks of the Road site.

Natchez National Historical Park Superintendent Kathleen Jenkins said the boundary, or feasibility, study began in 2005 to see if the property could be donated from the city to the National Park Service.

“We’re examining to see if it meets criteria to be a national park,” Jenkins said.

If it is feasible and the city decides to donate the site to the park service, the $500,000 cannot be used by the park service.

“It is specifically for the city to use,” Jenkins said. “That becomes a sticky point in the city donating the site to the National Park Service.”

Jenkins said once the city gets the $500,000, it’s a possibility the city could develop something with it and then donate the site and the development to the park service.

“I don’t know what the easy answer is here,” Jenkins said.

Even after the boundary study is completed, Brinegar said there’s a lot of consideration that needs to go into planning a development.

“It’s not going to happen tomorrow. The site is critical and it needs to be developed, but nothing needs to be hurried without public input,” Brinegar said.

Luckily, Jenkins said the city has time.

“The money doesn’t have an expiration date on it,” she said.

And Brinegar said the money will not be forgotten.

“I want this money. I’m not going to drop this money,” she said. “We’re going to pursue this money.”