NATCHEZ &8212; A state board on Thursday gave the city final approval to demolish the old Natchez Pecan Shelling Co. building to make way for construction of blufftop condos.

The permit board of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History &8220;voted to grant the permit based on schematics they had received&8221; of the proposed condo development, City Attorney Walter Brown said.

The approval was also based on three other conditions: acceptance of final condo plans, seeing evidence of an executed contract and receiving a report from a qualified geotechnical engineer regarding the site.

&8220;In other words, the board doesn&8217;t want to approve demolition unless they know something&8217;s going in its place,&8221; Brown said.

The board also voted not to designate the proposed site of a Canal Street hotel a historic landmark based on information already gathered from an archaeological dig MDAH started at the site earlier this week.

If crews later find something of significance at the site, &8220;they can always go back and designate it,&8221; Brown said.

Brown said an option agreement should be entered into with New Orleans-based developer Thomas Bauer by Feb. 28.