Consumer Banking
Chase Opens Innovative Community Center Branch in Atlanta’s Summerhill Neighborhood
Apr 06, 2023 Bank doubles down on growth in Atlanta metro region through new bank branches, hiring, office space
Atlanta, April 6, 2023 – Chase leaders and community partners cut the ribbon on a new Community Center branch in the Summerhill neighborhood of Atlanta, the first of its kind in the city and one of only 16 Community Center branches nationwide.
The Summerhill Community Center, located at 9 Georgia Ave SE – at the corner of Hank Aaron Drive – aims to expand access to banking, tools and advice that helps customers get on a path to financial health and resilience. The branch features a strong team of local financial health experts focused on community engagement, mentorship and advice. The location looks and feels different from a “typical” bank – it combines a modern design, spacious layout, and the latest banking technology, reflecting how customers engage with Chase today. Offerings include:
- Specialty financial health workshops on topics such as budgeting, credit and homeownership, for both individuals and groups
- Free one-on-one mentorship support to help local entrepreneurs grow, start or expand their small business
- A community “living room” area to serve as event space for partner nonprofits
- Complementary Wi-Fi for community groups and individuals on-site
All Community Center branch programming is complementary and open to Chase customers and non-customers alike. This community-inspired bank model is part of the firm’s $30 billion Racial Equity Commitment to help close the racial wealth gap.
“Atlanta’s growth and prosperity in recent years has exceeded all expectations, but more people need to be part of the opportunity this city represents,” said Jamie Dimon, CEO, JPMorgan Chase. “Our Summerhill Community Center branch is our stake in the ground to fuel opportunity for more residents, especially underserved populations. At the same time, we are also growing our presence here through jobs and branches, which will have a direct impact on strengthening the local economy.”
To build the new Summerhill Community Center, Chase contracted with FS 360, a Black-owned building firm in Atlanta. FS 360 also built the Chase Lounge at the Russell Center and has since built more than seven spaces for Chase in Georgia, Florida and South Carolina. The cost of construction for a new branch ranges from about $1 - 1.5 million per branch, and all labor and resources are locally sourced when possible.
“The opening of this center provides a physical space for the community to tend to their financial health, grow their small businesses and more” said Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens. “Thank you to Jamie Dimon and JPMorgan Chase for their partnership in assisting our Administration’s vision of building stronger neighborhoods.”
To better engage with community members, Chase has hired talented professionals from the Atlanta metro area in new roles to the bank including:
- Community Managers, Mathilda Lambert, a lifelong Atlanta native, will engage the Summerhill community and its surroundings to increase awareness of financial health resources, and host interactive programs on topics such as goal setting, budget building and understanding credit. Lambert is one of four Community Managers in the Atlanta metro region.
- Branch Manager, Kevin Brown, a 26 year resident of Atlanta and a 9 year veteran of Chase, will oversee all aspects of the Summerhill branch including traditional banking services and local community engagement.
- Senior Business Consultants, Rashida Winfrey and Shea Taylor, will provide access to complementary 1:1 business coaching, technical assistance and advice to hundreds of Atlanta entrepreneurs and minority small business owners on everything from boosting creditworthiness to managing cash flow to effective marketing.
“The Summerhill Community Center may look like just a building to some, but for others—those who have not had access to financial health and support resources – it represents possibility and opportunity,” said Brigitte Killings, Chase’s Community and Business Development Director for the South. “We look forward to delivering on the promise this Community Center branch represents for the people of Summerhill and the city of Atlanta.”
Our Community Impact
Since 2021, the firm has made more than $10.5 million in philanthropic commitments in the region – including a $2.4 million commitment to Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership (ANDP) announced in 2022. Using the funds from JPMorgan Chase, ANDP is developing 173 affordable single-family homes for homeownership. Of the 50 homes sold to date, nearly 50% of the homebuyers earned 80% or less of the area median income and nearly 90% of the buyers were Black or Latino.
In addition, as the official bank sponsor of the Atlanta Hawks, the two organizations have partnered on multiple community-focused initiatives including:
- Project Rebound: Chase is the presenting sponsor of this initiative which provides basketball and fitness equipment to youth organizations and schools in high needs communities.
- Second Chance: The Hawks and Chase have also partnered to provide funding for the Center for Employment Opportunities, an Atlanta-based nonprofit which provides employment services for people with past records in Atlanta.
“Our partnership with Chase goes well beyond the walls of the arena into communities like Summerhill and throughout greater Atlanta,” said Grant Hill, Vice Chair of the Board of the Atlanta Hawks. “Chase demonstrates its commitment to Atlanta daily through our joint initiatives like Project Rebound and Second Chance, both of which strengthen Atlanta’s underserved people and communities. We look forward to seeing that commitment grow through this space and the people in it.”
Serving Atlanta’s Small Businesses
According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, Georgia is home to 1.1 million small businesses – more than 1/3 of which are minority-owned. A core function of the Atlanta Community Center is supporting those businesses and helping them grow and succeed. In 2021, Chase launched a program to support minority entrepreneurs and hired Senior Business Consultants in 21 cities, including Atlanta, to provide minority business owners with free one-on-one advice and coaching.
Since its launch, the small business mentorship program has mentored 4,000 minority business owners, including Atlanta's hometown coffee brand, Hot Coffee, and hosted over 1,200 events.
“Building a relationship with my bank has opened opportunities for me to grow and manage my business that I might not otherwise have had,” said Kat Taylor, founder and CEO of Hot Coffee. “As my business has grown, my Senior Business Consultant was able to connect me with other small business owners facing similar challenges as well as experts in things like bookkeeping and accounting, enabling me to focus my time on marketing my products and serving my customers.”
Growing in Atlanta
Chase also announced it plans to open 15 more branches to greater Atlanta, bringing its total to 110 branches by 2024. Approximately 30 percent of these branches will be in low-to-moderate income communities.
The firm also plans to grow its workforce locally by one-third by hiring 500 new employees by the end of 2025. To accommodate this growth, the company is adding 40,000 square feet of office space at the Monarch Tower in Buckhead.
New jobs in the market include roles with the firm’s Atlanta -based technology team - including software engineers, developers, architects, as well as to support and build a new phone-based Personal Wealth Advisors team, among other hiring needs.
About Chase
Chase is the U.S. consumer and commercial banking business of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), a leading financial services firm based in the United States with assets of $3.7 trillion and operations worldwide. Chase serves tens of millions of people and 5 million small businesses, with a broad range of financial services, including personal banking, credit cards, mortgages, auto financing, investment advice, small business loans and payment processing. Customers can choose how and where they want to bank: More than 4,700 branches in 48 states and the District of Columbia, 16,000 ATMs, mobile, online and by phone. For more information, go to chase.com.