Jacksonville Housing Authority headquarters Downtown. | News4Jax
Published on September 29, 2026 at 3:52 pm
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A member of the Jacksonville Housing Authority board is suing the agency over the loss of her own housing assistance.
In a lawsuit filed last week in federal court, Harriet Brock, JHA board secretary and resident community advisor, alleges her Section 8 voucher worth about $1,200 a month was terminated without an appropriate hearing.
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Jacksonville’s municipal code says at least one person on JHA’s board must be a resident of public housing or a voucher recipient. If Brock loses her assistance, she may lose her seat, according to the code.
The filing says Brock, 67, was initially given a hearing around allegations that her entitlement was overpaid due to her adult grandson’s employment, which he concealed as a Georgia college student.
Section 8 rental assistance is calculated based on household income. The housing authority demanded that Brock repay more than $9,000 due to the grandson’s income, according to her suit.
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The lawsuit says overpayment is a separate issue from termination, which requires its own hearing. Brock says termination was never discussed, and her request for a second hearing was declined by Andrew Denicola, director of JHA’s Housing Choice Voucher program.
Denicola, along with JHA Director Cheron Corbett, are named in the lawsuit.
JHA declined to comment on the suit, saying its policy is to “not comment on, confirm or deny the existence of any ongoing or potential investigations involving personnel, program participants or board members.”
“Our agency remains fully focused on its core mission: providing safe, sustainable and affordable housing opportunities to individuals/families in need,” the agency’s statement says.
The allegations come as some residents might lose benefits under new work requirements that JHA says it will put into effect if the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development finalizes an optional rule.
