Indianapolis, IN

Indianapolis mayor to partner with HUD to reorganize troubled Indianapolis Housing Agency

Published

on


In an effort to address financial and structural issues at the Indianapolis Housing Agency, Mayor Joe Hogsett’s office will partner with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development in a “Cooperative Endeavor Agreement,” the city announced Monday.

Advertisement

“The overarching purpose of this process is to ensure more transparency, enhanced property management, and improved experiences for IHA/Insight families as well as preserving affordable housing options for Indianapolis residents,” Hogsett wrote in a letter Monday to Michael Allen, chairperson of the IHA board of commissioners.

The agreement will outline roles and responsibilities of the city, HUD, and IHA in a reorganization and reconstitution of the oversight, management and daily operations of the public housing agency, according to the city.

There is expected to be no impact on the status of the agency’s tenants under the new agreement, according to the city. Residents should continue to use the same resources as normal to pay rent, request maintenance, and submit applications, the city stated in the release.

“IHA welcomes the news that the City and HUD intend to pursue a Cooperative Endeavor Agreement,” the agency’s executive director, Marcia Lewis, said in a statement to IndyStar. “Over the past year and a half, we have made a number of changes to enhance our operations and maintenance. But it is clear we still have a number of challenges that require more significant intervention.”

The Indianapolis Housing Agency, which serves residents in both public housing buildings and the Section 8 federal housing choice voucher program, has long faced serious financial problems and accusations of mismanagement under the agency’s previous director, John Hall, leaving public housing residents to bear the brunt of the issues.

Advertisement

Approximately 25,000 low-income tenants depend on the federally-funded agency, which the city said plays a crucial role in serving the residents of Indianapolis.

The problems have ranged from bad housing conditions, including a lack of air conditioning during a heat wave last summer and bed bug infestations, to a crippling system-wide cyberattack last October. Two separate legal actions have been initiated against the agency this year, one lawsuit filed by residents this May and one investigation by the Indiana Attorney General.

More: As Indy housing agency faces financial crisis, residents suffer the brunt of its neglect.

Advertisement

“I want to thank HUD for their collaboration as we have sought to improve the operations of IHA,” Hogsett said in a media release. “We have continued to press forward with our discussions with HUD leadership, and we’re optimistic they will conclude before the end of the year.”

IndyStar has reached out to the agency’s board of commissioners for comment.

The agreement is the next step in a process started in December 2022, when then-senior policy advisor to the mayor, Jeff Bennett, wrote to HUD requesting for HUD and Indianapolis to play a more active role in the Indianapolis Housing Agency.

Bennett wrote that IHA needed additional, immediate support that the agency and Indianapolis could not provide on their own, in the areas of IT infrastructure, finance, public housing programs known as project-based rental assistance and rental assistance demonstration, housing choice voucher program management, capital management, and property maintenance.

The agency has already been under scrutiny from HUD. It was audited by HUD in 2022. HUD was providing technical assistance for financial management of the agency and the Housing Choice Voucher program as of December last year, according to Bennett’s letter.

Advertisement

Indianapolis also paid nearly $2.5 million to support the agency’s maintenance staffing and operational needs in 2022.

Contact IndyStar reporter Ko Lyn Cheang at kcheang@indystar.com or 317-903-7071. Follow her on Twitter: @kolyn_cheang.



Source link

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Trending

Exit mobile version