Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson recently said the legislature must pass a law giving his office sole control over coastal tidelands on the Mississippi Sound and its bays and to limit potential casino sites.
Watson told SuperTalk Mississippi radio show host Gerard Gibert the proposed bill, now in a legislative conference committee, is essential due to a recent Supreme Court ruling against his office that “effectually gutted” the current tidelands law. It was the fourth tidelands case the Secretary of State’s office lost in recent years.
The high court ruling in favor of the landowner and local governments involved an acre on the Mississippi Sound in East Biloxi, known as the Aldrich property. The Aldrich family previously operated the Fisherman’s Wharf restaurant on the site and owned the land from the water line up to the seawall at U.S. 90.
Watson’s office claimed the state controlled the land since it was filled in water bottoms, subject to tidal ebb and flow, and therefore held in trust for the public. However, the court declared the Aldrich property is outside the state tideland’s boundary.
An investor group called Tullis Gardens LLC wants to lease the Aldrich property as part of a proposed casino site. They claim the proposed tidelands law would kill their project. In a news release, the investors stated Watson’s comment that the Tidelands Act was “gutted” by the court decision was not true.
They noted the court said the secretary of state’s office incorrectly drew tidelands boundaries. In addition, the investors pointed out the court ruled it would be a “travesty of justice to deprive Aldrich of the property his family has enjoyed the fruits of for decades based solely on a misdrawn map.”
State Senator Mike Thompson, a sponsor of the tidelands legislation, said under current or proposed law, a casino would not be allowed on the site.
He said the bill simply would give casino operators “stability and certainty” in the market. Other investors have stated the proposed law would put an end to their projects. Observers noted many members of the Biloxi business community believe the market is saturated as several previously approved casinos sites remain undeveloped.
