JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 The old site of Lake Forest Elementary will soon be the home of 120 affordable housing units and an on-site early learning center.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a partnership with Ability Housing, a nonprofit developer, Duval County Public Schools, the city of Jacksonville and several other organizations. <\/p>\n
\u201cTo see a building that was closed and it was a community hub and we get to continue to make it a community hub but in a different way,\u201d Reggie Fullwood, the CEO of Ability Housing, said.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s unique because 25 percent of that housing will be set aside for Duval County Public Schools faculty and staff to help with retention.<\/p>\n
Fullwood says it\u2019s been a team effort to fund the 46-million-dollar project.<\/p>\n
\u201cBank of America, National Equity Fund, the city of Jacksonville played a significant role, community foundation LIHTC,\u201d Fullwood said.<\/p>\n
District 10 Councilwoman Ju\u2019Coby Pittman, in attendance Wednesday, says this is a long-awaited project and needed for the north side of Jacksonville. She says through listening sessions with residents, this redevelopment aligns with what the community said they wanted.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am unapologetic to say I\u2019m excited about the commitment that is made to this community. Because just like we represent other communities in doing affordable housing, affordable housing needs to be done in this district. And that\u2019s 7, 8, 9 and 10,\u201d Pittman said.<\/p>\n
To qualify to live here, households will need to earn up to 60% of the area\u2019s median income. 23 units will be set aside for families that earn 80% of the area\u2019s median income. Ability Housing says based on 2025 data from HUD, a four-person household earning up to $61,500 could potentially qualify at the 60 percent AMI level, or up to $82,000 at the 80 percent AMI level.<\/p>\n
Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan says there is a large need for affordable housing in the city.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are really frantic for more affordable housing. We\u2019re minus about 50,000 units from what we really need,\u201d Deegan said.<\/p>\n
A University of North Florida study on the affordable rental housing crisis in Jacksonville says in 2019, about 47 percent of renters here are cost-burdened. That means the cost of rent takes up more than 30 percent of their income. About 23 percent are what the study calls severely cost-burdened. Rent takes more than half of their income.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarketplace housing we\u2019re doing pretty good. Where we\u2019re lacking is in that range. That 60 to 80 percent AMI. That\u2019s where the dearth is, so we need to make sure that\u2019s where we\u2019re laser-focused in trying to create that housing for people who need it,\u201d Deegan said.<\/p>\n
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