Mayor introduces Dr. Riggs and student project tied to Jacksonville's RISE housing grant

Mayor Ezzard introduced a presentation by Dr. Charles Riggs and his students about work tied to Jacksonville's RISE housing grant, which the mayor said the city received in the spring and is intended to support housing efforts. "Our RISE RISE grant is the grant that we received in the spring that is for housing," the mayor said, and he thanked Dr. Riggs and the students for their work.

Ezzard said the class project was commissioned by the city's engineering team (Jamie Headen with Benton and Associates) and described the presentation as giving the city additional design input that could be useful in negotiations with developers after the bid process. "We're gonna be able to have input with the developer after the bid process," he said, urging that RFP parameters be shaped to capture community benefits where possible.

The mayor framed housing as a local economic issue, saying shortages affect both workforce and the real estate market: "When you ask an employer what some of the weaknesses we have, it's workforce. Another... is housing. It's a lot of towns are in the same boat. Jacksonville is down, and we don't want it to be down any longer." He added that turning over housing inventory could help realtors and newcomers seeking variety in the local housing market.

No formal action or vote was taken on the RISE presentation during the meeting. The mayor said the city already has funding in place for the project and that staff will coordinate next steps, including integrating suitable recommendations into the developer RFP and negotiating terms during the procurement process.

The presentation concluded and the council moved to the city clerk's report.