NATCHEZ — When Kevin Brodeur and Kevin Miers were opening their Franklin Street store, there was one piece of advice the pair took to heart.

They had an old building to turn into a successful business, so they sought help from a consultant from the Mississippi Development Authority. What they were told was a bit startling, but it was something they knew they had to tackle.

“What he told us was that it takes a person about three seconds to decide whether or not to come into your store,” Miers said. “You have just three seconds to catch their attention when they are walking by.”

“It’s even less if they are driving,” Brodeur said.

Brodeur and Miers decided they had no better option than to meet the challenge head on and set out to make their building welcoming and appealing to potential clients.

The virtual garden and decorative flags that adorn the outside of South Union Interiors are the exception and not the norm in downtown Natchez.

The downtown area of Natchez is the heart of the historic city, but often the jewel isn’t as polished as it could be, members of the Mississippi State University First Impressions team said.

From crumbling sidewalks in some portions of downtown to hard-to-find street signs, the area can be difficult to navigate for the pedestrian, the report says.

Brodeur agreed, saying poor appearances in the heart of the city send conflicting messages to people spending time in downtown.

“One of the biggest things I get asked is, ‘Is Natchez coming or is Natchez going,” he said. “We’ve come a long way in just the eight years that I’ve been here. It would be a shame to see that progress stop.”

The progress he speaks of is the increase in the number and types of businesses that have chosen to locate downtown. Intermingled with the numerous antique shops are restaurants, clothing stores, specialty gift shops and artist niches.

But it isn’t enough to just set up shop downtown. Extra work maintaining and improving the property is what will make the difference between a stagnant downtown Natchez and a progressive downtown Natchez.

“It’s a matter of pride,” Brodeur said. “Just pride to be as good as you can be and do what is needed.”

Miers said one of the biggest changes made to the front of the store was the addition of a waterspout near the front of the building that makes the maintenance of their plants much easier.

“It was about a $180 investment, but it has really made a big difference,” Miers said. “Even when we had to carry water from the back of the store to the front, we did it. But when we added the water in the front, we were able to add more plants.

“We saw a huge jump in traffic soon after we added the new plants,” Miers said.

Since moving to Franklin Street less than three years ago, Miers said he has noticed businesses around his making improvements to their outward appearance. Though he can’t be sure, he hopes moving South Union Interiors to the block has encouraged people to take pride in their storefronts.

“I think a bit of peer pressure comes with this type of improvements,” Miers said. “Take the building next door to ours; they emulated the flags that we put up. And that is great.

“And across the street, at Seasons, they put a lot of work into their windows and planters.”

Unfortunately, the trend doesn’t continue through all of downtown. Just as prominent as the new and growing businesses in the downtown landscape are the dilapidated properties that have been untouched for years.

Brodeur said the crumbling buildings are a distraction from the charm of Natchez.

“The defunct buildings are just shameful,” he said. “And the families have allowed them to get this way.

“I have lived in places where the city would have repossessed those types of properties. I’m not sure that is the best course of action here, but there is a need for some type of accountability.”

No quick fix exists for the buildings in need of restoration, but there are some simple changes that Miers believes would improve the quality of downtown.

“The addition of more trash containers would go a long way,” he said. “Right now there is one at each end of (our) block so you basically have two trash cans for 600 feet of a block.”

Miers said making downtown more handicapped accessible could encourage more people to visit the area.

“The addition of more wheelchair ramps wouldn’t be a bad idea, especially where there are only stairs now.”

Downtown resident Michael Cates agrees that Natchez needs to do something to be more welcoming downtown.

“They aren’t tourists. They are guests,” Cates said. “And they should be treated that way.

“We can spend all the time in the world talking about how to spend money to attract people, and that is all good and useful. But the fundamental issue that we have to look at is how people are treated when they are here. That is what they will take away with them.”