The Jacksonville Housing Authority Board meets Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. | Elizabeth Caldwell, Jacksonville Today
Published on November 12, 2026 at 3:17 pm
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The Jacksonville Housing Authority has been subpoenaed by the State’s Attorney Office for the Fourth Judicial Circuit as questions about the agency’s finances continue after its CEO’s recent firing.
The criminal prosecutor’s subpoena is seeking a raft of records from October 2023 to Nov. 5, 2026. The deadline for delivery is Nov. 20.
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The records that State Attorney Melissa Nelson’s Office is requesting include documents tied to the proposed executive bonuses that led to the firing of former CEO Cheron Corbett last month. The board asked Corbett to resign after she proposed to personally receive 12% of development fees paid to the authority on top of her $300,000 salary. They fired her without cause on Oct. 27.
The state’s attorney office is seeking any records of negotiations around the bonus. Housing Authority records available online show Corbett asked for the same type of bonus when she was hired in 2025.
Corbett said at the Jan. 14 meeting to negotiate her employment terms in Jacksonville that a 12% cut of developer’s fees would be appropriate compensation for her expertise.
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“You have to be a true subject matter expert as it relates to tax credits, underwriting, to real estate development and really just understanding the planning process, in general,” Corbett argued at the time.
Several board members expressed reservations, including Chair Heather Horovitz, who said creating affordable housing is the CEO’s central task.
“I really do feel strongly that that is the work. You come here. You develop housing,” said Horovitz.
“We can’t at this time commit, but it’s definitely something that the HR Committee and the Governance Committee could discuss,” board member Andrea Reyes said.
The board agreed to revisit the proposal later, and Corbett brought up the previous bonus discussion at the authority’s Oct. 19 meeting.
Only two commissioners at the 2025 discussion are on the board today. Reyes resigned from the board last year, as did Lisa Weatherby.
Other records the state’s attorney is seeking include a no-bid contract with Nan McKay, a consultant Corbett hired to handle the agency’s Housing Choice Voucher pool. A reported 17% reduction in the waitlist for that program is also under scrutiny.
