JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Today, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity opened the Jacksonville Rebuild Florida center to help Florida homeowners repair and rebuild homes that were damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Irma.

DEO Executive Director Cissy Proctor said, “Hurricane Irma devastated the lives of many vulnerable families in communities across Jacksonville, and many have yet to recover. For this reason, we are committed to helping these Floridians rebuild their lives and their homes.”

Rebuild Florida, a program of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, will connect eligible Florida homeowners with federal disaster recovery funding to repair and rebuild homes. The program will initially serve those in the federally designated most impacted counties.

Jacksonville Council President and Senior Vice President of Business Development for JAXUSA Partnership Aaron Bowman said, "Rebuild Florida is bringing tremendous resources to help Jacksonville residents and businesses recover from the lasting impacts from Hurricane Irma. We appreciate Gov. Rick Scott's commitment to our state and his hard work to bring federal funding to help our communities rebuild."

In these hardest-hit communities, funding will prioritize the most vulnerable populations including low-income households with seniors age 62 and older, households with children age 5 or younger, individuals with disabilities, and those displaced from Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands who are permanently resettling in Florida. Owners of rental properties also may qualify if they are renting to low or moderate-income Floridians.

The Jacksonville Rebuild Florida center will serve as a local resource for homeowners to begin the disaster recovery process. The center will be open Monday through Saturday so case managers can help homeowners complete the 15-30 minute registration process. Homeowners have until December 23 to begin the registration process. The center is located at 215 Market St. in Jacksonville. Homeowners may also visit RebuildFlorida.gov or call the Rebuild Florida call center at 844-833-1010 to receive assistance with registration.

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