NATCHEZ &045; Natchez’s tourism director is reconvening the council charged with enforcing a tourism ordinance passed in 1998.

That could mean more stringent enforcement of regulations for horse-drawn carriages and motor coaches in the future.

The Tourism Management Council was established by aldermen in early 1998 but met only a few times before becoming inactive. The next time it met was Tuesday.

When asked why the council is being reconvened after so many years, Tourism Director Walter Tipton said issues related to the ordinance have been discussed in several meetings he has attended recently.

&uot;And there’s a general feeling that the ordinance has been in place for a couple of years now&uot; and may need reinforcement, Tipton said.

Of the council’s original members, three have already moved away from the area. But the four members that were present at Tuesday’s meeting expressed concerns with enforcement of the ordinance.

Among other their concerns were that drivers of horse-drawn carriages do not wear badges or uniforms. The 1998 tourism ordinance requires drivers to wear badges as well as &uot;uniforms or other suitable or presentable clothing.&uot;

They also stated some horses do not wear a &uot;diapering&uot; apparatus, which is also required by law.

And they talked about the possibility of partnering with Copiah-Lincoln Community College to offer classes to educate drivers of horse-drawn carriages on the history of their routes.

Under the ordinance, all carriage tours must be conducted by a registered tour guide permitted by the city, except for those who were already conducting tours when the ordinance was enacted.

George Vines, owner of Southern Carriage Tours, said it’s hard enough keeping drivers who work by commission, even without making them wear uniforms in the summer heat.

Besides, said Magnolia Carriage Tours owner Mike Folds, by the time someone works with a horse and carriage for even a matter of minutes, his uniform would be soiled &045; not exactly &uot;presentable.&uot;

Both said they are willing to make their drivers wear badges if they can get them from the city, which was supposed to issue them to each driver.

And both carriage tour operators said they keep &uot;diapers&uot; on their horses, although they admitted that they sometimes develop holes. &uot;I just ordered five more&uot; diapers, Vines said.

As far as the tour guide classes are concerned, Vines just laughed.

&uot;We could teach them something instead of the other way around,&uot; Vines said. &uot;When we first started, we did those (classes), and we knew more details than they did.&uot;

The Tourism Management Council is slated to meet again next month. However, three of four members at Tuesday’s meeting expressed interest in resigning.

Once issues with the ordinance are ironed out, the council would ideally meet every six months or when new issues presented themselves, Tipton said.