Meetings in Biloxi will help decide a comprehensive development plan for the city. Local residents are being asked their opinion on three key issues: development of the peninsula, the city’s storm vulnerability and managing growth north of the bay. The last Comprehensive Plan was adopted in 1996, well before Hurricane Katrina destroyed over 20% of Biloxi’s homes and businesses in 2005. The new plan is intended to establish a vision for the next 20-25 years and the means of implementing necessary changes.

As redevelopment occurs, Biloxi faces the challenge of preserving its culture and history in the context of casino and tourism related development. The gaming industry is the city’s largest employer and casinos were rebuilt quickly after the hurricane, the first reopening just four months later, but diversification and the provision of new entertainment options are needed both for the quality of life of residents and to establish Biloxi as a premiere destination.

There are eight casinos in Biloxi and they provide valuable tax revenue as well as employing over 10,000 workers and attracting tourists to the area. Dockside gaming is only permitted in the Waterfront Zoning District and existing casinos cover 120 acres of this land area. Another 107 acres are vacant and potentially available for dockside gaming. There are three new casino facilities being developed and before the credit crisis it had been envisaged that Biloxi would have between 12 and 16 casinos within the next few years.

One indication that further casino expansion may no longer be imminent is the cessation of subsidised flights between Florida and Mississippi. AirTran Airways has been under contract to fly players from Tampa, Fort Lauderdale and Atlanta to Gulfport-Biloxi since 1999 but the daily flight from Tampa International will be discontinued on 5 January. George P. Corchis Jr., president and chief operating officer of MGM Mirage's Mississippi operations, told the SunHerald newspaper: "For nearly 10 years we have subsidized the airline and in this economy, we simply can no longer afford to do it alone." (E-12.09.08)

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