JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville church is developing affordable housing and revitalizing a shopping center on the city’s northwest side.
The plans include more than one hundred homes for renters or buyers.
This fall, Greater Grant Memorial AME Church will break ground on a development that includes 34 town homes on Gilchrist Crossing, right next to the church.
The Reverend Micah Sims said the goal is to teach people how to become homeowners.
The church formed the Greater Community Development Corporation and paid $1.6 million for land that will become a new neighborhood called Soutel Crossing.
It’s located at Soutel Dr. and New Kings Rd., with plans for 69 market-value homes.
Sims said you don’t have to be a church member to buy or rent one of the homes. The church is providing classes on money management for those who don’t meet the rental requirements.
“It’ll fall within our program of building renters and homeowners, and not just homeowners,” Sims said, “but again trying to decrease that financial literacy gap with people. So how do you develop wealth so that you can make sure that you’re able to bless and kind of take care of your children’s children?”
University of North Florida Professor David Jaffee spearheads the Jax Rental Housing Project.
Jaffee said his primary concern is whether or not this housing will be truly affordable for this community since there’s no indication on how affordability would be defined. He also said the involvement of private investor Performance Capital Partners might place some pressure on rent costs.
Jaffee said these are the zip codes that most need affordable housing.
“People living there are in low wage jobs,” Jaffee said, “and so for something to be affordable, it would mean that the residents who occupy these homes would be paying no more than 30 percent of their income.”
Sims said the housing will remain affordable because they’re not investment properties.
“We want people to realize that Jacksonville is the best kept secret in America,” Sims said. “We want to make sure we’re providing the kind of housing opportunities for everyone.”
For more information about buying or renting one of the homes, you can email info@greatercdc.com or call Sims at 904-878-9093.