JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Mixon Town. It's a low to moderate income neighborhood in Jacksonville’s Northwest area.
Some say that the neighborhood is ripe for gentrification. That’s the process when the character of a poor urban area is changed by wealthier people moving in.
As a result, people who have been there for years, or even generations, are economically pushed out.
Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry and colleagues launched a program Thursday designed to help neighborhoods resist gentrification. It's the Jacksonville Community Land Trust (JCLT).
Basically, the land trust – a non-profit -- will take city-owned properties starting in north and northwest Jacksonville and have new homes built on them.
Steve Kelley is the JCLT Board Chairman. He explained, "We as the community land trust will own the underlying land and lease it to the buyer on a long term basis."
The buyers will be low to moderate-income people or families.
And when the homeowners in the program subsequently sell that house, they can. But there’s an agreement, according to the JCLT website.
That house has to be sold to another family or person who meets the income qualifications, and it will be sold at an affordable price.
The goal is to improve neighborhood stability.
"There are a million different ways to tackle this question of gentrification," Land planner and historian Ennis Davis told First Coast News. He has a lot of questions about this project and if it will work.
"But the main thing is this," Davis said. "It must be community led. If your solution is not coming from the community, it’s probably going to disenfranchise the community at some point."
Kelley told reporters, when asked about the make-up of the board, "We are eager to fill our board with members from the community we will be serving."
As for Mixon Town, there's no word yet if there are any properties there in the land trust's portfolio right now. However, Kelley said the JCLT wants to see this spread.