Published: July 17, 2008 12:03 am         

Status better for area agency

Ashland Housing Authority ‘financially troubled’ no more

ASHLAND — The Ashland Housing Authority is poised to shed its “financially troubled” status.

A large number of improvements aimed at turning the agency around has been completed in recent months and officials say they expect to complete a federally mandated agreement ahead of schedule.

Last July, board members signed the 14-month agreement with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which outlined goals and requirements that must be met to shed its troubled status. According to Ashland Housing Authority Executive Director Rick Young, the agreement will be completed well before its Sept. 30 deadline.

The mandate covered a range of topics from accounting and financial stipulations to updating procedural and administrative policies but at the top of the list was making the facility upgrades needed to fill vacant apartments and maintain current tenants.

According to Young and Larry Brown, a city commissioner and an HA board member, the agency has made many of those upgrades improving the quality of life of residents and occupancy rates at the same time.

Young said both Scope Towers and DeBoard Terrace currently have the highest occupancy rate the housing authority has seen in more than a decade. As of Wednesday, he said, the 334 of the combined 379 units are occupied.

Of the remaining units, 21 are awaiting asbestos removal before they can be rented, Young said. That work will be completed this fall, leaving just 24 vacant units. Young said he expects to have those rented within the next two to three months.

Additional improvements to make 17 units handicap accessible will be completed over the next three years. New roofing is being installed at Scope Towers and agency officials signed a $159,740 contract this week to replace two boilers at the complex, remove the asbestos and the installation of new hot water storage tanks.

A laundry list of other improvements including landscaping, paving, painting and general cleaning has also been made. A long-term study was also completed that prioritizes other longterm infrastructure improvements to be made over the next 10 years.

Together, these efforts have not only boosted occupancy but have noticeably increased resident pride in the facilities, Brown said.

In turn, higher occupancy rates have translated into increased revenue for the agency. The agency is expected to be well in the black next year. Young said he expects at least $400,000 in revenue during the next fiscal year.

The revenue will fund additional improvements but a small portion will be paid to the City of Ashland in lieu of taxes.

The agency has been unable to make payments to the city for services it is providing in recent years due to its financial struggles but Young said the agency plans to send officials a pilot payment of $32,000 in coming weeks. “We want to make sure we do our part and pay as much as we can toward those services,” he said.

Brown said the agency’s progress could not come at a better time. The economic challenges facing the country will mean a greater need for subsidized housing, making it crucial the agency be viable.

“We’ve made great strides but we’ve really, really worked. We never want to get in that position again,” Brown said. “Winston Morris is no longer the (board) chair but he was very instrumental in moving us forward. Each board member made sacrifices to meet and develop a plan of action and work the plan. I couldn’t be more pleased with the board and the staff and employees and our new director and deputy director,” he said.

A spokesman with HUD failed to reply to a request for comment on the Housing Authority’s progress before press time Wednesday night. Young said he’s been in close contact with federal officials and they are “shocked that things have turned over so quick.”

     

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