The city of Gulfport, Mississippi, is working on bringing one of the largest aquariums in the US to fruition as part of a US$120m (€96.4m, £75.6m) mixed-use development.

The aquarium would cost US$100m (€80m, £63m), according to the city’s chief administrative officer, John Kelly. The aquarium would replace the one lost to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and would not be paid for using taxpayers’ money.

The city is hoping to have land assembled for the aquarium by the end of 2014, while a further assessment is still needed to work out the aquarium's size, ticket prices, attractions and exhibits. The city is planning to fund the project through bonds, with the proceeds then repaid from the aquarium profits and related revenues.

"If we are successful in building what we want to build," said Kelly, "it could be the sixth- or seventh-largest aquarium in the United States."

Gulfport officials have spoken with the former aquarium’s owner Moby Solangi about operating an aquarium, but a deal is yet to be reached.

"We have told them that we'll be delighted to work with them once they have some funding in place," said Solangi speaking to local press. "The most important part is funding. The rest of it is all talk."