Punta Gorda Housing Authority welcomes Benjamin

Jacqueline Benjamin, branch manager of the Parkside office of Charlotte State Bank & Trust, is serving on the Punta Gorda Housing Authority Board of Commissioners. The Punta Gorda City Council appointed Benjamin to fill an unexpired term on the Housing Authority Board ending on May 21, 2021.

The primary role of the PGHA is the delivery of quality, affordable rental housing and rental subsidies to qualified low-income households within its jurisdiction. Established pursuant to Florida law, the Authority is not a federal agency, although it has a contractual relationship with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to implement programs established by Congress. The federal government, through its annual budget process, provides funds for these programs.

The Punta Gorda Housing Authority operates the city’s Public Housing and Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) programs for low income residents within its jurisdiction. City Council governs the Authority and its seven-member Board of Commissioners. Board meetings are held the third Thursday of each month at 8:30 a.m. at the Punta Gorda Housing Authority offices located at 340 Gulf Breeze Ave.

“Serving on the Punta Gorda Housing Authority is a great opportunity to help provide quality, affordable housing for our citizens,” Benjamin said. “During my career in banking, I have strived to treat all residents with professional courtesy, empathy and respect, which is also required of Authority board members.”

Benjamin has been involved in the banking industry since 1980. She joined Charlotte State Bank & Trust in 2006 as a Personal Banker at the Murdock office and was named Parkside manager later that year. She grew up in Charlotte County and attended Punta Gorda Middle School and Charlotte High School. She is married with two children and one grandchild.

Active in the community, Benjamin is a director of the Punta Gorda Chamber of Commerce and chairs the chamber’s Membership Committee. She is also a member of the executive committee overseeing the renovation of the Parkside Community Redevelopment Area serves on the boards of the Fred Lang Foundation and Friends of the Port Charlotte Public Library.