“Partnerships for Raising Opportunity in Neighborhoods” Invests in Grants to Incentivize Local Leaders to Identify and Solve the Greatest Needs in Distressed Communities

JPMorgan Chase & Co. today announced a $100,000 planning grant for the San Diego Small Business Lending Collaborative to create economic opportunity through creation of an Equitable Development Plan to meet the needs of entrepreneurs and small businesses in the San Diego Promise Zone, comprised of three of the City’s most economically disadvantaged neighborhoods. As part of the firm’s $125 million, five-year Partnerships for Raising Opportunity in Neighborhoods (PRO Neighborhoods) Competition, the San Diego Small Business Lending Collaborative will develop an equitable neighborhood plan and create a roadmap for long-term change in communities that have been historically left behind.

The San Diego Small Business Lending Collaborative is a partnership of the Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation, Accion, CDC Small Business Finance, Logan Heights Community Development Corporation, and the San Diego & Imperial Small Business Development Center Network. This grant will be used to administer 1,000 surveys in the San Diego Promise Zone to gather data on the capital and technical assistance needs of diverse small business owners, including business owners without storefronts. This data will inform the creation of a responsive, data-driven Equitable Development Plan that can be used to deploy start-up and expansion capital to diverse small business owners operating within the San Diego Promise Zone.

With equitable and inclusive economic growth at the heart of the strategy, JPMorgan Chase recognizes the importance of having a plan in place to develop and drive equitable outcomes for families, businesses and communities. That’s why this year’s PRO Neighborhoods competition included planning grant opportunities for local leaders to identify the greatest needs facing their communities and develop data and community-driven neighborhood plans – 14 planning grant winners received $1.8 million this year in addition to the four capital grant winners in Fresno, Milwaukee, New Orleans and Philadelphia.

“JPMorgan Chase believes more people should have access to opportunity and the chance to move up the economic ladder, particularly in the world’s cities where the benefits of revitalization are not reaching everyone,” said Tim West, executive director and head of JPMorgan Chase’s Middle Market Banking practice in San Diego. “Through our PRO Neighborhoods program, the San Diego Small Business Lending Collaborative will further its work to help create and sustain economic growth in San Diego.”

PRO Neighborhoods provides the necessary capital to local community development financial institutions (CDFIs) to address the drivers of economic opportunity in neighborhoods. These CDFIs work together to pool resources and expand lending activities for building health and education facilities, open retail centers and support community services in area neighborhoods.

“We are very pleased to receive this grant to help us discover real opportunities for businesses that will help them succeed and flourish,” said Jacobs Center President and CEO Reginald Jones. “It is through this type of collaborative effort that we can build the economic strength of our communities, making them stronger and more resilient.”

Measuring the Impact of PRO Neighborhoods
JPMorgan Chase has hosted five competitions to-date, awarding more than $98 million to 25 groups of collaborating CDFIs in communities across the country – work that’s highlighted in a new progress report by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. Among other highlights, the report found that the winners of the first three competitions leveraged JPMorgan Chase’s nearly $68 million in support to raise an additional $717 million in outside capital, issued over 21,000 loans to low-to-moderate income customers, and created or preserved over 3,000 affordable housing units and 11,000 quality jobs.

For more information about this work in San Diego, please call Jacobs Center Vice President, Impact & Partnerships Bennett Peji at 619-527-6161.

About the San Diego Small Business Lending Collaborative
The San Diego Small Business Lending Collaborative works together to support small businesses by identifying and removing barriers to growth. The project aim is to support the growth of diverse locally owned businesses within the San Diego Promise Zone, so that residents can live and work in their own community and take an active role in their neighborhood’s revitalization. The plan will make measurable progress on equitable growth by identifying strategies that invite participation by diverse small business owners and eliminate cultural and social barriers. For more information, please call Jacobs Center Vice President, Impact & Partnerships Bennett Peji at 619-527-6161.

About JPMorgan Chase
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $2.6 trillion and operations worldwide. The firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction processing, asset management, and private equity. A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase & Co. serves millions of consumers in the United States and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional, and government clients under its J.P. Morgan and Chase brands. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com. Follow JPMorgan Chase on Twitter @JPMorgan or @Chase and Facebook.