Vicksburg Mayor George Flaggs Jr. addressed attendees as the speaker for the Vicksburg-Warren County Chamber of Commerce’s monthly luncheon, which was held at the Vicksburg Convention Center Wednesday.

Flaggs touched on current issues in the community, like crime, and economic development.

“You can’t have a community of retired individuals, and young people thriving to become the best they can be, and you certainly can’t keep the millennials here, if you don’t do something about crime,” he said.

After his comments on crime, Flaggs turned to issues of economic development, stating that tax revenue had increased by 14 percent compared to 2021.

Flaggs spoke of $1.5 million in planned improvements to the downtown area. Part of this money would go toward improving the riverfront, including improvements to the docks for visiting river-boat tourists, as well as a floating dock for recreational purposes.

He also mentioned plans on improving Washington Street from Haining Road to First East Street. Flaggs said there are plans to fix flooding problems as well as fully expand that stretch of road to two lanes. A bicycle trail would run alongside it.

Flaggs touched on how the city is addressing the housing shortages, including the new Ash Meadows development which is planned to have 32 new homes. He also said he was speaking with developers who are interested in building more houses within the city,

“You can measure the success of a city by looking at how they prepare their children through education for their future,” Flaggs said in the closing of his speech. “I think we’re doing all the things right, and we’ll keep doing it.”

The next luncheon will be held on May 18.