Economic development in Jordan is healthy, Mayor Ron Jabs noted as an aside during the city council meeting tonight.

For a discussion about this summer's art festival, City Planner Casey MacCallum put together a map with the names of businesses that front downtown Jordan streets. The map was meant to factor into a decision about which sections of roadway to close for the festival, which annually draws about 2,000 people to the historic business district. 

Jabs noticed the vacant buildings MacCallum had marked on the map, and he suggested that calling them available properties might be a more positive description. 

Fewer than 13 percent of the downtown buildings are empty, Jabs said, but the way people complain about vacancies, somebody might think there were more available properties in the area.

"We'd just like to see it filled and used," Jabs said.