After a series of delays, Vicksburg officials Tuesday voted to ask the Legislature to authorize the city to jack up hotel and restaurant taxes to pay for a sports complex.

South Ward Alderman Sid Beauman voted against the action to seek an additional 2 percent tax on hotel stays and an additional 1.5 percent tax on food and beverages to finance borrowing up to $20 million for ball fields in an undetermined location.

“I don’t think this is the right time to propose a facility,” said Beauman, who left the meeting early because of illness. “I’m for something like this probably more than anyone, but I’m not sure this is the right time.”

Beauman is a previous city parks and recreation director.

“There’s one city in the county, and everybody in the county plays in the same place,” he said, adding the city needs to include the county in the project. “I don’t think there needs to be just a city parks and recreation department.”

The city’s current 2 percent hotel tax funds the Vicksburg Convention Center. A 1 percent tax on hotel rooms and all food and beverages sold in the city and the county supports the Vicksburg Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Mayor Paul Winfield has estimated the taxes would generate about $1.2 million annually, sufficient to pay off an $18 million to $19 million loan in 15 years. He said the taxes would expire once the loan to buy and develop the sports complex was paid off. He said the $20 million is a threshold, adding the project could cost less.

If state legislators approve the city plan for the tax increases, the proposal goes to the voters.

A special election — projected by Winfield to cost $80,000 to $90,000 to administer — could be held about 90 days after legislative and gubernatorial approval.

A majority of city voters would have to approve the proposal before the taxes could be levied.

State Reps. George Flaggs and Alex Monsour, and state Sen. Briggs Hopson III said they have not seen the bill.

“Once we get it, I’ll meet with Briggs and George Flaggs and we’ll discuss it and move it through the system,” Monsour said, adding he would take the lead to move the bill through.

Flaggs said he supports the concept for the sports park but has concerns about the bill, including the call for a special election.

“That’s going to cost us about $80,000, and that’s a lot of money to spend in these times,” he said. “I also want to talk with the mayor and the board and the people who will be paying this tax. I may hold a public hearing on it.”

Hopson declined to comment until he has seen the bill. He said he also planned to meet with business people in the community to discuss other alternatives.

North Ward Alderman Michael Mayfield said he voted for the bill to give the city a funding option for the sports complex.

“I believe we need to look at two or three options to fund this recreational facility,” he said. “If the Legislature authorizes us to use the tax, it’s one option we can consider, but we still have a lot of homework and a lot of legwork to do. We need to talk with the public and we need to talk with the people who will be paying this tax, the hotels and the restaurant and bar owners. We need to listen to them.”

Vicksburg resident Rowdy Nosser, who owns a restaurant outside the city, urged the board to reconsider the proposed funding mechanism.

“Personally, I don’t think it’s (the tax) fair; you’re discriminating against the hotels and restaurants. You’re singling out them to fund it,” he said. “Why not pass something where everybody participates? I support the concept. We should have thought about this a long time ago.”

He suggested the board pass an across-the-board 1/2 percent sales tax to fund the complex project.

Winfield said he is against increasing property taxes and that’s why he favors further taxing of hotels and restaurants. He also said he was advised by the Warren County legislative delegation to act quickly in seeking approval for his proposal.

“There’s 18 to 20 other cities doing the same thing,” he said.

Winfield said other groups in the city eventually would be asked to participate in the sports complex project, but would not specify which groups.

Nosser urged the board to talk with the hotel and restaurant owners.

“You need to get everybody on the same page,” he said. “The right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing. Take your time and do this right.”

He also asked the board to consider leasing 16th Section land from the Vicksburg Warren School District for the sports park.

Winfield has said he plans to build the sports complex on an unspecified piece of property on U.S. 61 North, outside the city limits.

He planned to introduce the tax increases at the board’s Feb. 6 meeting, but postponed bringing it to a vote until after a meeting with the county’s legislative delegation. The board met on Feb. 8 with city attorney Lee Thames, city clerk Walter Osborne Jr. and former Vicksburg Mayor Demery Grubbs, a financial consultant for Government Consultants Inc. in Jackson, to discuss the proposal.

Two more special meetings were later called and canceled before Tuesday’s meeting.

The city in 2003 bought a 200-acre tract on Fisher Ferry Road for a sports complex for $325,000. City officials abandoned the project in 2009 after spending an additional $2.7 million for preliminary plans, engineering and dirt work.

Winfield has said the Fisher Ferry site was not suitable, because part of the property, including the access route, is in a flood zone.

In 2007, the city board hired USA Partners Sports Alliance of Jacksonville, Fla., for $250,000 to determine the feasibility of a proposed $25 million sports complex at Halls Ferry Park, including Bazinsky Field, proposed by the Aquila Group of Vicksburg. It would have included baseball and softball fields and related amenities, a water park, a baseball stadium/ballpark and facilities for golf, soccer, volleyball, tennis and other activities. The Aquila Group would lead the construction and management of the fields and sports facilities.

The project died after a study by the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality found the site was not suitable because part of Halls Ferry Park was built on what was once the city’s landfill.

Under an agreement between the city and USA Partners, which was hired after the Aquila Group approached the city, the company would return the $250,000 feasibility study cost to the city if the complex did not materialize. More than four years later, the city has not been reimbursed.

Beauman and Mayfield have said that something needs to be done with the Fisher Ferry site before the city moves to develop a new sports complex.

Beauman has said he cannot support a sports park until the Fisher Ferry property issue is resolved. Winfield has suggested selling the property for residential development to get back some or all of the city’s $3 million investment in the site.

In other action

Meeting Tuesday, the Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen:

• Approved minutes for the Dec. 9 and 19 meetings.

• Took under advisement a $158,724 bid from Empire Truck Sales of Jackson and $159,766 from Ingram Equipment of Pelham, Ala., for a new street sweeper.

The board also took under advisement six bids for painting the city’s 17 water pumps. The city received seven bids for the project, but rejected an unopened bid from R.J. Handyman because it did not meet bid specifications by having its contractor number or the words “not to exceed $50,000” on the bid envelope.

• Adopted the following budget amendments: transferred $300 from the senior service fund to the senior capital fund for a printer, transferred $1,000 from the police department service fund to the garage for training, transferred $1,000 from the vehicle maintenance fund to training, increased the water fund services budget by $11,578 for insurance.

• Authorized Mayor Paul Winfield to sign an amendment to the city’s agreement with Siemens. The amendment raises the guaranteed savings under the energy efficiency contract by $2,500.

• Authorized Winfield to sign a preventive maintenance agreement with ID Group Inc. of Ridgeland for the city’s photo ID equipment.

• Authorized Winfield to sign an agreement with the Central Mississippi Trauma Region for a $16,450 grant for the city’s ambulance service for equipment.

• Authorized Winfield to sign an agreement with the Alcorn State University tennis team for the 2012 Tennis in the Park spring mini camp.

• Authorized Winfield to execute the Vicksburg Airport Layout Plan for the airport. The updated plan is required by the Federal Aeronautics Administration.

• Approved issuing a $421.44 check to Eastern National Bookstore at the Vicksburg National Military Park and a $1,460 check to 4Imprint of Chicago for promotional items for the city.

• Approved a special assessment of $2,832.38 for cleaning and clearing property at 2515 Pearl St. owned by Helen Smith.

• Granted a 45-day extension to the owners of property at 1505 Bodley St. to remove a dilapidated building and junked cars.

•Approved allocations of $30,000 to Haven House and the Vicksburg-Warren County Chamber of Commerce.