For Immediate Release
Date: July 17, 2014

The Bank of America Foundation presented $10,000 in grants today to two City of Savannah partner nonprofits to increase affordable housing in Savannah.

During a ceremony in front of a newly built home in the Savannah Gardens neighborhood, Mayor Edna Branch Jackson joined Bank officials to present $5,000 each to Community Housing Services Agency (CHSA) Inc. and Step Up Savannah Poverty Reduction Initiative.

“Today we are celebrating a transformation, and that is an exciting thing,” said Bank of America Savannah Market President Patrick O’Neil. “Bank of America is proud to be part of the progress that is occurring in Savannah Gardens.”

The City of Savannah has partnered with CHSA to develop Savannah Gardens into a mixed-use, mixed-income community with 550 energy-efficient units. The $100 million redevelopment of 44 acres that once housed the substandard Strathmore Estates rental complex is transforming the Pennsylvania Avenue corridor.

“It takes the public, nonprofit and private sectors working together to create lasting change,” Mayor Jackson said. “It is gratifying that Bank of America is stepping up today to be part of the solution. I hope other financial institutions join them.”

CHSA, the master developer of Savannah Gardens, will use the grant to help provide additional affordable housing on site. Step Up will use its grant to help fund its job training and financial literacy programs.

“It’s partnerships such as this -- between banks and community programs -- that make our city work,” said Step Up Executive Director Suzanne Donovan. “Their contribution to Step Up Savannah means we can do more.”

“This is how quality affordable housing happens,” said CHSA Executive Director Darrel Daise. “This is a how a community moves forward.”