Leaders from Ability Housing and JPMorgan Chase recently gathered to celebrate the completion of Village at Hyde Park: a multifamily housing community that has brought 80 affordable apartment homes to Jacksonville’s Westside.

Village at Hyde Park was completed in December 2019 and reached full occupancy in March 2020. Today’s event, which was originally planned for the spring of 2020, provided an opportunity for the community’s developers and residents to gather in celebration after a challenging year.

As part of its efforts to increase affordable housing across Florida, JPMorgan Chase provided a $150,000 grant to Ability Housing to identify the site for the Village at Hyde Park development. The firm also helped finance the project through a construction loan and equity investment.

Over the past five years, Chase’s Community Development Banking group has provided more than $500 million in construction financing resulting in the addition or renovation of approximately 5,000 affordable housing units throughout Florida. Going forward, as part of the company’s $30 billion commitment to advance racial equity and drive an inclusive recovery, the company has made a $400 million philanthropic commitment focused on increasing affordable housing, advocating for data-driven policy solutions through the JPMorgan Chase Policy Center, and implementing new business practices to promote housing stability and affordability.

In addition to the construction of Village at Hyde Park, grant funds from JPMorgan Chase supported two of Ability Housing’s properties in Orlando: Village on Mercy, a 166-unit, new construction apartment community that was completed in December 2019; and the Wayne Densch Center, a 75-unit rehabilitation project that was completed in August 2020. Together, these three projects represent 321 new units of affordable and supportive housing to serve Northeast and Central Florida.

During the celebration, leaders from Ability Housing and JPMorgan Chase planted a Cathedral Oak tree in memory of Jim Pellot — a longtime supporter of Ability Housing who served on the organization’s Board of Directors from 2013 through 2019.

Forum Architecture & Interior Design, Inc. served as the project architect. Sauer Incorporated was the general contractor. Financing for the $18.68 million project was provided by the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Enterprise Community Investment, Inc. and the Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH).