HANNIBAL, Mo. — Missouri State Rep. Louis Riggs announced plans to organize a statewide task force that will look at ways to meet housing needs.

Riggs spoke during the Tri-State Housing Summit on Sept. 8 in Hannibal. The annual event brings together stakeholders from Missouri, Illinois and Iowa to discuss housing options.

The Hannibal Republican said that the issue is broader than housing, tying in to economic and workforce development.

“We take an approach in Jefferson City to try and figure out what the statewide solution looks like, and we really haven’t had that full-throated conversation quite yet,” he said. “I’d like to be able to take the ideas from here today and incorporate those, talk to some folks and see what that would look like.”

Riggs said cooperative efforts he’s been a part of – such as a weekly group of people from the northeast and northwest part of the state during COVID – proves that success can be achieved.

“I’d like to be able to take that sense of community and basically take that out for a statewide conversation on issues like that,” he said. “Other parts of the state have similar issues, but they’re not identical. In order for us to do some policy changes, some budget changes, we need to have that type of input from stakeholders like you.”

Riggs said he wants to “translate into policy” ideas generated by the task force and “hopefully some appropriations” to fund the programs.

NECAC Deputy Director for Housing Development Programs Carla Potts, who organized the summit, looks forward to the task force’s work to address what she called a “housing crisis.”

“This is our opportunity,” Potts said. “If not now, when? If not us, who? We must say ‘This is the need’ and ‘here is how we’re going to address it. We must work together to make sure more people have safe, affordable housing.”

Other summit speakers agreed that regionalism is the key to success.

“There is such an underserved portion of our communities that require people to come forward like yourselves,” said Hannibal Mayor James Hark. “I’ve always been a proponent of what is good for Hannibal is good for our region, what is good for the region is good for Hannibal.”

“Second only to food, shelter lies as the most basic of human needs,” said NECAC President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Page. “Yet, we have yet to attain this need for all of our citizenry. We have each, separately, realized that the housing problem is bigger than we (pointing to chest) are, but I remain steadfast and convinced that it is not bigger than WE (pointing to audience) are.”

The summit featured two speakers from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – Region VII Administrator Deke Clayborn and St. Louis Field Office Director James Heard.

“Housing is critical,” Clayborn said. “It’s where everything starts. Whatever you are going to do, it starts with the home.”

“You need to be making a whole lot of noise right now,” Heard advised. “You need to be talking about your needs. You need to be talking about what you want, and then bring it to the federal government and say ‘Can I do that?’”

Kyle Wilkens was on his first tour of the state as new Missouri Director of USDA Rural Development.

USDA does “a lot of good things,” Wilkens said. “Housing may be the most important one. If you don’t have people in houses in rural communities, you don’t have a rural community and that’s just it. It’s infrastructure. There’s no reason to have anything else if you don’t have anybody there in houses.”

Hannibal resident Alison Ross drew applause for telling of her struggles to get back on her feet after life setbacks. Ross is a substitute teacher and will graduate next spring to become a full-time educator.

“Thank you for providing us with a safe place to live. and continue the work you do for us,” she urged.

Those who attended later broke into small groups to develop housing ideas. The annual event is hosted by NECAC of Bowling Green, the Two Rivers Regional Council of Quincy, Ill., and the Southeast Iowa Regional Planning Commission of Burlington. NECAC organized the first summit in 2005. It is an outgrowth of the Tri-State Development Summit covering 35 counties in the three states.

Former Quincy Mayor Chuck Scholz represented the Tri-State Development Summit.

“We all understand that housing is fundamental, so to look out today and see all these people together collaborating on how to improve quality of life, not just for those who we help obtain housing, but we know that’s quality of life for the whole community. When people put down roots and become stakeholders, we all benefit,” Scholz said.

More information about area housing efforts is available by calling Potts at 573-324-6622.