NATCHEZ &045; Mississippi gaming commissioners, attorneys and applicants have gathered for the Gaming Commission’s second meeting in Natchez in as many years.

Commissioners will hold their June meeting at 9 a.m. today at the Natchez Convention Center and were treated to a reception Tuesday evening at the center. The commission holds its meetings at different locations throughout the state several times a year.

&uot;It’s important to maintain a good relationship with the commission so that when gaming developers come to the commission regarding a site, (commissioners) think of Natchez,&uot; said City Attorney Walter Brown.

The scene at Tuesday’s reception was somewhat different than an event held on the eve of the commission’s May 2003 meeting in Natchez. At that time, city officials led a cross-section of casino company representatives and others in the gaming business on a tour of the city’s Roth Hill site.

City and economic development officials are still marketing 5.3 acres of riverfront property at the foot of Roth Hill, plus the 1.7-acre convention center parking lot site and the old Natchez Pecan Factory building, to prospective developers.

This year’s visit won’t include such a tour. But, at a Tuesday night reception held at the convention center, commission Chairman Leonard Blackwell II said he still believes gaming is and should be an integral part of Natchez’s overall tourism effort.

&uot;Natchez is a great tourism destination, the kind of place in which gaming should have a part&uot; in the scheme of tourism destinations, Blackwell said Tuesday. &uot;Our model for gaming in Mississippi is, it’s an adjunct to tourism.&uot;

Florida-based developer Charles Cato also attended Tuesday’s reception.

Cato, who was once considering the Roth Hill site for his Emerald Star Casino and Resort, now plans to locate his development just south of the Mississippi River bridge.

The commission approved Cato’s site and development plans in February but must still approve his proposed financing plan for the development in order for the project to go forward.

Cato said he hopes to get financial approval from the commission during its July meeting. In addition, Cato said he is still working to close a deal to buy the Ramada Inn and The Briars bed-and-breakfast inn by the end of the month, with legal work being the final holdup on the deal.

Emerald Star must also secure environmental permits as well as approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers &045; for which it recently applied &045; and the Coast Guard.

No Natchez-related items are on the commission’s agenda for today’s meeting.