JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – If you want to know the story of veteran News4JAX newsman Jim Piggott, it can be found in what has become a second home for him over the past four decades.
Much of the city of Jacksonville’s staff has turned into his extended family. That’s because every morning, Piggott starts his day with a trip to Jacksonville’s City Hall.
It started with Jacksonville Mayor Jake Godbold.
“It has truly been a pleasure with Jim Piggott every single morning. Just so much of a pleasure to be around him,” City Hall employee William Adams said one recent morning.
Then there is the sign-in book in the office of Jacksonville’s City Council. On every page, the vast majority of signatures belong to Piggott.
“A lot of people think I do old-school reporting,” Piggott said. “I don’t do it on the phone. I spend every day down here at City Hall.”
He goes there looking for the big news of the day.
“You cover news by going to the source, and it just doesn’t happen anymore,” he said.
It won’t be happening anymore for Piggott either. After decades of covering the biggest stories in Jacksonville politics, Piggott is retiring and plans to spend his mornings elsewhere.
His last day is Monday.
His time in Jacksonville started in the 1980s, and from the beginning, mayors knew the tough questions would likely be coming from Piggott.
Former Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry fielded questions from Piggott for eight years.
“Jim always showed up. He always knew the subject matter, and I always thought he was fair and objective. He’s gonna be missed for sure,” Curry said.
Curry dealt with reporters of all stripes for two terms, but one thing he knew with Piggott, he would get an honest reporter.
“You know you’re going to get questions and you know you’re going to get questions that are off subject,” Curry said. “But he’s going to do it professionally. He’s not going to -- in the middle of a press conference about books for children -- start screaming at you about another controversial issue. But he’s certainly going to get you before that press conference ends or before you walk out of there on the issue that matters to the people.”
Before she was mayor, Donna Deegan knew Piggott as a reporter and colleague from her time in local media.
“Finally I get him out of my hair. The guy’s up there every single day rummaging through everything,” Deegan said, laughing. “The truth is he’s doing his job, and he’s always done his job. And I think Jim has always done an incredible job of making sure people know what’s happening in our city. ... I wish him the best, and if he wants to go the way of others of us, he can come right on over and get into politics. We’ll be ready.”
Although it became his signature beat, Jim’s first story wasn’t about city politics. Instead, it was about the seedy side of Jacksonville in the 1980s when a show called Miami Vice was popular. It was called “Jacksonville Vice.”
“I came down, I went out with the vice squad on Philips Highway and there was a photographer and myself,” Piggott recalled of the assignment. “There would be a hotel or motel room, and the officers would go out and pick the guys up, and we would come out with our cameras and say, ‘Surprise!’”
The stories Piggott has covered are too many to count, from hurricanes and elections to investigative pieces -- which brings us to the iconic promo from the Channel 4 vault when Piggott was dubbed the “Troubleshooter.” (Trust us, you need to watch it.)
But with all the chaos he’s seen and investigated, Piggott always wound up back at the stories he prioritized over all others.
“I’ve always thought, local, local, local, local. Local government,” he said. “You start at the bottom, and it affects everyone. That’s why I love covering City Hall.”
But if you’ve watched Piggott for any length of time, you know he goes beyond the serious stories. He’s appeared on TV in bounce houses and in hot tubs.
“I enjoy that,” he said. “I enjoy everyday things.”
And when he was interviewed for this story, he wore a special tie, his father’s, to honor the real reason he got into broadcasting.
“He was in television and radio. It’s something that’s in my family. That’s why I do this. It’s because of that. He was the voice of Indianapolis. He had nine kids. I was one of them,” Piggott said.
Indianapolis is where Piggott himself started, but everything else for the past 40 years has been right here in Jacksonville.
Piggott said Jacksonville is his home and he plans to enjoy it even more -- along with some traveling -- as he steps away from news and into his next chapter.