โI am being pushed outโ: Jacksonville Housing Authority CEO to resign after report finds agency misused funds
Jacksonville Housing Authority CEO Dwayne Alexander on Monday submitted his resignation letter more than a month after he came under fire following the release of a city investigation into the agency.
Income-based housing wait list remains long in Jacksonville as supply lags
As of last week, there were 162,991 applications on waiting lists for low income and affordable housing in Jacksonville, according to the Jacksonville Housing Authority. Families can spend years on those lists, waiting for relief.
Jacksonville Housing Authority to hold emergency meeting on impending city investigation thatโs critical of agency
There are still unanswered questions about a soon-to-be-released city investigation into the Jacksonville Housing Authority (JHA), an agency that oversees public housing in Jacksonville.
I-TEAM: Fix problems or donโt get paid, city tells landlords of troubled apartments
Fix the problems by Saturday or donโt get paid. Thatโs the message Jacksonville housing officials have for the landlords of a troubled apartment complex that the News4JAX I-TEAM first exposed last month. City leaders tell the I-TEAM that management at the Cascade Apartments in Grand Park has been told to correct all problems by Saturday otherwise affected residents can withhold their rent.
JTA uses retrofitted buses to bring vaccines to Jacksonville senior facility
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ Seniors and people with disabilities in Jacksonville lined up Friday to be vaccinated outside their government high-rise. Two retrofitted city buses acted as mobile vaccination clinics for the residents. But the Jacksonville Housing Authority said its senior housing was not included in the effort. Mia Jones is the CEO of Agape Family Health, a nonprofit health center assisting in running a state vaccination clinic on Jacksonvilleโs Northside. Jones said after seeing reports she offered to vaccinate hundreds of seniors living on JHA properties.
Vaccination clinics scheduled at 2 Jacksonville Housing Authority senior high-rises
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ Jacksonville Housing Authority officials said Monday that state contractor Agape Family Health will hold vaccination clinics this month at two of its senior high-rises. Agape Family Health CEO Mia Jones has, for weeks, assisted in running the state vaccination site at Edward Waters College. After seeing News4Jaxโs stories on JHAโs senior housing properties, she offered to vaccinate 500 of the authorityโs residents this week. โI was surprised because I thought that all of the senior housing properties had been taken care of with the corporate pharmacies going out,โ Jones said. Otis Bess Jr., 71, is a Vietnam veteran and a resident of JHA senior high-rise Centennial Towers.
Hundreds of Jacksonville seniors still waiting for COVID-19 shots
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ More than 2 million seniors in Florida have been inoculated against COVID-19 so far, but as the state begins to lower age requirements, hundreds of seniors are still being missed in low-income housing. The agency said it vaccinated over 9,000 seniors in two weeks and it planned to wrap up the effort on Friday. State vaccine clinics were held at 10 Duval County HUD apartment complexes as a part of the vaccination effort, according to a Division of Emergency Management spokesperson. โA lot of the clients here either donโt have a way to go and then you got others, I think they are just a little leery of the vaccine,โ Bess said. AdThe Division of Emergency Management has not answered questions about whether it plans to create vaccine clinics at public housing authorities throughout the state.
Enrollment to begin next week for Housing Choice Voucher Program
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ The Jacksonville Housing Authority announced it will be accepting online applications for the Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section 8) and the Mainstream Voucher Program beginning at 8 a.m. Monday, Feb. 8. Itโs the first time JHA has opened the voucher enrollment program since 2018. AdThe Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section 8) is open to families with gross annual income from all members of the household at or below the Area Medium Income that corresponds to the number of family members. For example, for a family of two, the income limit is $48,000, and for a family of four, the limit if $60,000. The Mainstream Voucher Program is open to people who are disabled and who are between the ages of 18 and 61with incomes at or below the Area Medium Income.
HUD awards $740K to help 100 Jacksonville residents with housing
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has awarded the Jacksonville Housing Authority $740,400 through the CARES Act to provide 100 vouchers to help Jacksonville residents avoid losing their homes. The CARES Act allowed HUD to allocate vouchers to public housing agencies like JHA to help them prevent, prepare for and respond to coronavirus in their communities. The Housing Authority says it plans to apply for more vouchers because of the need that exists in the city. There wasnโt enough housing, thereโs not enough affordable housing to go around,โ she said. The vouchers will fund residents with safe and sanitary housing for those facing homelessness.
Mayor responds to explosive report on Jacksonville housing chief
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A day after a city report was released backing up claims that Jacksonville Housing Authority CEO Fred McKinnies had slept with some of his employees and a tenant, Mayor Lenny Curry spoke out Tuesday, addressing the issue. The report states that McKinnies also paid JHA employees to make repairs at his home and the home of an accuser. "Today, the Jacksonville Housing Authority received the City of Jacksonville Office of Inspector Generals final report of its investigation into allegations of misconduct by JHA President and CEO Fred McKinnies. The city investigation into McKinnies' conduct began in August 2018. Dwayne Alexander, JHA's interim CEO and president, thanked the inspector general's office and the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission for investigating the case.
Investigation: Jacksonville housing chief had sex with staffers & tenant
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The City of Jacksonville Inspector General's Office has released its report into alleged misconduct by the head of Jacksonville Housing Authority, which substantiated claims that CEO Fred McKinnies slept with some of his employees and a tenant. The report states that McKinnies also paid JHA employees to make repairs at his home and the home of an accuser. "Today, the Jacksonville Housing Authority received the City of Jacksonville Office of Inspector Generals final report of its investigation into allegations of misconduct by JHA President and CEO Fred McKinnies. "These are some of the most vulnerable people that are being served by the Jacksonville Housing Authority and I truly believe...that this should never happen again," Dennis said. Dwayne Alexander, JHA's interim CEO and president, thanked the inspector general's office and the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission for investigating the case.
I-TEAM: 1 taken to hospital after elevator 'failed' at senior community
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - An elevator malfunction at a high-rise senior community in downtown Jacksonville sent one person to a hospital, the News4Jax I-TEAM has learned. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said the elevator at Centennial Towers "failed" June 26 while three tenants were on it. "Just went down ... went to the second floor," said Otis Bess, who lived in Centennial Towers. Thomas Davidson needs an elevator to get down from his 14th-floor apartment at Centennial Towers. According to Davison, the elevators at Centennial Towers break down frequently.