NATCHEZ — The Natchez aldermen are expected to decide Tuesday whether to give a New Orleans hotelier approval to proceed with the development of the downtown historic railroad depot.

More than a year after initiating the development process, New Orleans Hotel Consultants President Warren Reuther appeared before aldermen at their last meeting requesting approval to move forward with renovations of the depot. Reuther’s company also manages the Natchez Convention Center through a contract with the city and owns the Natchez Grand Hotel near the depot.

Reuther told the board his plans for the depot included partnering with Steampunk Coffee and Smoot’s Grocery owner Dub Rogers to open Café Natchez, a coffee shop, restrooms open 7 a.m. until 9 p.m. as well as a visitor information center.

Reuther said he has spent approximately $80,000 on the interior renovations so far, and the continuation on the project had been put off until after the city’s June elections and a new administration could take office in July.

“The election is over,” he said. “I’m coming here telling you we’re ready to finish.”

Rogers told the board he has complete confidence in going into business with Reuther and that he supports the project “whole-heartedly.”

“I’ve put my whole soul into it,” he said. “I’d be extremely proud to be involved in this. My great-grandfather was the station master at this depot, so it has a little more special meaning to me.”

Ward 3 Alderwoman Sarah Smith, who has raised multiple issues with the city’s depot agreement with Reuther, told Reuther that while she thought his plan for the depot was great, she was concerned about aspects of how the city entered into the lease.

The city came under fire for the perceived lack of transparency and questions of legality in previous dealings for the depot.

Additionally, Smith said, the aldermen voted to issue a request for proposals (RFP) in May and had not done so yet.

“That’s off the table,” Reuther said. “I’m ready to move forward.”

“It’s not off our table because we voted for a (request for proposals),” Smith said, before being cut off by Reuther who said, “I have a contract with you.”

The city — under a previous administration — originally intended to turn the depot and surrounding area into a farmers’ market and extension service offices in conjunction with Alcorn State and Mississippi State universities, but plans for that development fell through.

When bids came in too high for the city to renovate both the exterior and interior of the depot, the project was split into two phases, with phase 1 being the exterior renovations paid for by grant funds from the Mississippi Department of Transportation to renovate the exterior.

Former Mayor Butch Brown approached Reuther and asked Reuther if he was interested in developing the depot and paying for the completion of the interior renovations, Reuther has said.

Reuther’s intentions to develop the depot first came up for a vote of the board of aldermen at its Sept. 8, 2015, meeting during which the board unanimously approved what was dubbed a non-binding letter of intent.

While the city voted to approve the letter of intent, Smith said, the minutes for the meeting include a resolution to surplus the depot property.

“There are issues with this resolution being inserted into the minutes,” Smith said. “We’ve got to be transparent. These are public properties.”

The resolution included in the city’s minutes for the Sept. 8, 2015, meeting is titled “Resolution to enter into a letter of intent for the development/lease agreement of the Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad Depot,” drafted by Reuther’s attorney and former city attorney Walter Brown.

In the third paragraph, the resolution states “the City of Natchez has determined that the property is surplus and not currently needed for municipal or governmental purposes and that it is in the best interest of the city and the citizens of the community that the property be set aside and improved for commercial purposes” per state statute 57-7-1.

Brown said the resolution is essentially a restatement of the letter of intent, and he is not certain it was even necessary for the city’s record.

“I think we’re dealing more with form that substance,” he said, regarding why the resolution was drafted if it was not necessary.

Ward 1 Alderwoman Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis said Thursday she was not sure the city even needed to officially surplus the property to lease it and wanted to check on that matter.

City Attorney Robert “Bob” Latham, who was appointed in August, Latham said Friday it was his opinion that per state statute, the city would need to officially declare the property surplus in its record to lease the property.

Latham noted that he has not been able to find any mention of the aldermen voting to surplus the property in the Sept. 8, 2015, meeting.

All of the aldermen who were on the board at the time the letter was approved, except for Ward 6 Alderman Dan Dillard who could not be reached for comment, say they do not recall approving a resolution that declared the property surplus, only the letter of intent.

“I don’t think that resolution was there when we voted,” former Ward 5 Alderman Mark Fortenbery said. “We did a letter of intent, and then all of the sudden, (the property) is surplused, and we didn’t ever vote on it. I hope the board that’s in place now does the right thing … (which is) hitting the reset button. Back up and punt, and let’s try this again.”

Former Ward 4 Alderman Tony Fields said, “The only thing I can honestly recall is the letter of intent.”

Fields also said that he was not aware the lease was for .92 acres of the bluff and not just for the depot building.

“Everything I did, I perceived to be doing with only the building,” he said.

Mayor Darryl Grennell said Friday he did not realize the depot lease was for more than just the building as well. Grennell told Reuther and Attorney Brown at the last meeting that he and the new members of the board needed time to review actions regarding the depot during a previous administration.

Ward 2 Alderman Billie Joe Frazier, who was not an alderman when the board took its previous action on the depot, however made a motion, seconded by Ward 1 Alderwoman Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis, to give Reuther the approval to move forward at the last meeting.

“The rest of the board members that have been here before, they should have had all the information. … That’s the problem with the board, we’ve got to quit dragging our feet … and whatever we’re going to do it, and go ahead on and let Mr. Reuther take Natchez into the future.”

Smith expressed disbelief at the meeting that Frazier would vote on continuing with a lease he had not even seen.

“With progress, yes we want it, but the fact that you would vote on something that you haven’t even seen (or) found out if we have done something legally,” she said. “It’s (a criminal) offense to (alter) the records. This is not something to take lightly, but if you’re comfortable, you can vote your conscience.”

The board eventually agreed to postpone action, with Dillard suggesting the aldermen set a deadline for Tuesday for action to be taken on the depot.

The approval Reuther is seeking Tuesday is an “affirmation of the existing contract,” Brown said Friday. Reuther has a lease and could move forward, Brown said, without the OK from the aldermen.

Instead, Brown said, Reuther wanted to ensure everyone was on the same page and show deference to the city.

“He could be through with (the renovations) by now,” Brown said. “With the (former mayor’s) stroke, the elections and the motion by (Smith) to do an RFP, it would sort of be thumbing your nose at the city to go ahead with it.

“There’s no reason we should not go forward with it. It’s a great project.”

If the city does not want Reuther to proceed with the development of the depot, Brown said, the aldermen could change the outcome.

“They could say,  ‘Would you be wiling to rescind the contract and we’ll repay the $78,000 (spent on the building) and let it sit or issue a bond or, God forbid, raise taxes, or we’ll do the project ourselves or find a grant.”

Brown said during the months between when the city approved the letter of intent and when the lease and development agreement was approved in November, he heard no questions raised.

“Except for some folks who have another agenda,” Brown said.

“This is all about a few personalities … people who may not like Butch or Warren Reuther, picking at this word or that word.”

Former Ward 2 Alderman and current County Supervisor Ricky Gray said he heard concerns about the depot dealings after the deal was nearly finished.

“Me, personally, I didn’t realize anybody had a problem with what (was) going on, he said. “Don’t wait until the deal is almost done, then you pop out of the woodwork and say you have a problem.”

The board of aldermen is scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the Natchez City Council Chambers. The depot development is listed on the meeting agenda under unfinished business.

The aldermen tasked Latham at their last meeting with reviewing the aldermen’s previous action on the depot and related documents and records pertaining to the history of the depot development.

Latham advised the aldermen, when asked his opinion at the meeting by Ward 4 Alderwoman Felicia Irving, that it would be in the best interest of the city to review their past actions regarding the depot and correct “anything that needs to be corrected.”

Latham said he would present his complete findings regarding the depot development to the aldermen at their Tuesday meeting.

State statute 57-7-1 provides for the “sale or lease of surplus government lands for improvement for industrial and commercial purposes; improvement of property.”

The statute does not require publishing public notice for the proposed lease of a property, as does statute 21-71-1, which Smith has said she thinks would be a more appropriate statute for the city to use for the depot lease.

The statute would require the city advertise for bids and accept the highest bid. The statute also allows the city to lease property without advertising for bids.

Brown said the 21-17-1 is a “good statute,” but requires municipalities to get appraisals for a lease or sale if they decide to not accept bids.

“I don’t know how you do an appraisal on how you would develop this property,” Brown said. “That’s not really appropriate for this. (Statute) 57-7-1 is a good way to do creative projects.”

In hindsight, Fields said it would have been better for the city to have leased the property using a statute that required public notice.

“We are talking about property on the bluff,” he said.