MILWAUKEE, Wis. — A leadership change is underway at the embattled Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee (HACM).

On Thursday, HACM announced the appointment of an interim secretary-executive director and the resignation of its deputy director, who has been with the organization since 2009.

Kenneth Barbeau will serve as the interim secretary-executive director, effective Jan. 2, 2025, HACM announced in an emailed press release late Thursday night, Dec. 19.

The secretary-executive director is responsible for HACM’s operations and reports to the Board of Commissioners.

What to know about Kenneth Barbeau:

• Barbeau has been with HACM since 1999, serving most recently as the chief operating officer of program services.
• In his current role, he oversees a broad portfolio of public housing resident services, including programs focused on employment, education, healthcare, senior and disabled services, financial literacy, and more, according to HACM’s website.
• He also provides oversight for HACM’s Section 8 program and public safety department.

The release also highlighted the resignation of Deputy Director Fernando Aniban, effective Feb. 21, 2024.

The Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee

Aniban had previously served as the Chief Financial Officer since October 2009, where he led the strategic management process for the agency and “implemented policies, systems, and procedures that strengthened internal controls and ensured accurate and timely financial reporting,” according to HACM’s website.He was later named Assistant Secretary- Deputy Director in May 2022.

The announcement of Aniban’s resignation follows a federal reviewof HACM, made public on Dec. 11. The report stated that HACM is not providing high-quality public housing, inaccurately reporting financial information, and may not be in compliance with federal and state regulations.

The review also stated the agency submitted “material misstatements,” including a variance of more than $2 million in an unreconciled account.

HACM has not provided a reason for Aniban’s resignation.

The announcements also came just two weeks after current Executive Director Willie Hines, who has faced scrutiny, announced he would step down at the end of this year. His resignation will be effective Jan. 1, 2025. Hines is set to receive $11,000/month for the rest of his life.

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But will a transition in leadership result in meaningful improvements for those HACM serves? For two years, people living in Milwaukee’s public housing have been vocal about deplorable living conditions in properties citywide.

Those conditions include infestations of rats and cockroaches, reports of black mold, bed bugs, intrusions, and inadequate heating in some apartments, forcing some residents to rely on space heaters or use their ovens for warmth. For the last year and a half, TMJ4’s Jenna Rae has been reporting extensively on these issues.

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The announcement of leadership changes also comes the same week TMJ4’s Jenna Rae reported on emails obtained by the station showing that Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson’s team has been facilitating media responses for HACM. This comes amid Rae’s continued investigations into HACM residents’ living conditions, the agency’s practices, and the transparency of the city’s leadership.

WATCH: INVESTIGATION: Mayor’s office involvement in Housing Authority leadership

INVESTIGATION: Mayor’s office involvement in Housing Authority leadership

Meanwhile, HACM’s new board members echoed their previous statements committing to provide greater transparency.

“As commissioners, we are steadfast in our commitment to providing safe, affordable housing and enhancing the quality of life for our residents across the City of Milwaukee,” said Charlotte Hayslett, Chair of the HACM Board of Commissioners in the emailed press release Thursday. “That includes ensuring a smooth transition of leadership as we search for a new Secretary-Executive Director.”

Whether the changes in leadership will result in meaningful improvements for residents in 2025 remains to be seen.

TMJ4 News is committed to elevating the voices of those living in public housing. Email Jenna.Rae@tmj4.com.

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Racist political flyers targeting immigrant communities were discovered Thursday morning near a southside Milwaukee park.

The flyers were found along sidewalks near Ohio Park, 974 W. Holt Ave., in the Morgandale neighborhood between Eighth, Ninth and 10th streets by West Oklahoma Avenue and West Holt Avenue, Ald. Marina Dimitrijevic told the Journal Sentinel Thursday evening.

The alderwoman said a constituent notified her office and staff then notified the Milwaukee Police Department. Dimitrijevic said “it appears” that more flyers were found in other parts of Milwaukee County and Wisconsin. “The FBI is involved … but it’s still under investigation,” she said.

The FBI and Milwaukee police didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday night.

Dimitrijevic said several versions exist of the flyers, one of which has circulated in a neighborhood group online. “MASS DEPORTATION NOTICE,” a flyer is titled. The flyer then calls for undocumented immigrants to vacate the U.S. or be forcibly removed upon the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump on Jan. 20.

The Morgandale neighborhood is about 50% Latino and is also home to a growing Burmese Rohingya community. “This was a targeted area,” Dimitrijevic said.

“Clearly someone with a terrible intent, racist intent, a hateful intent, spread these carefully in a certain area at a certain time and it almost felt like it was right before school and people were kind of getting moving,” she added. “It’s pretty painful to get these types of phone calls.”

Another flyer calls for “white power unity” and offers a phone number to call to report undocumented neighbors, Dimitrijevic said.

A substance was found in some of the baggies holding the flyers, but “the substance has been deemed nontoxic,” Dimitrijevic said.

“I’ll be asking the city attorney, the police department, to look at whatever the violation was, private property littering,” she said. “… I certainly wish that racism was illegal but I am just really concerned about the families who worked really hard to be here and make our city what it is and to discover this with your family and children, such hateful flyers is just totally unacceptable. I can’t say more about how I absolutely refuse to normalize this activity.

“I don’t know why people are feeling emboldened but I’m not going to let that happen, certainly in my district or our city. … I see the strength of my district and the city is diversity, so the fact that it’s being attacked again, I’m not going to tolerate.”

Longtime neighbor responds to flyers

Michelle Jensen has lived in the Morgandale neighborhood for 18 years. “I’m just sickened, to be honest, it makes me angry,” she said.

“I’m choosing to believe that this person doesn’t live in my neighborhood.”

Jensen described her neighborhood as “very diverse.” She said it’s been “great” having new communities move into her neighborhood.

“I truly have felt very blessed to live in this neighborhood because I’ve felt so supported by neighbors,” Jensen said. “This makes me feel uncomfortable and not safe in the neighborhood.

“People have taken it too far, their political divide. What an idea to think that it’s OK to hate like this. It’s just gone too far.

“I really feel like it should be followed up on by the police. That’s a serious threat and it makes me fear for my neighbors.”

Drake Bentley can be reached at DBentley1@gannett.com.

Reporter-anchor Tajma Hall says she’s leaving WDJT-TV (Channel 58) after two years at the Milwaukee CBS affiliate “to pursue new opportunities.”

In a post on Facebook Wednesday, Hall, who has been at Channel 58 since February 2022, said she’s leaving the station early in 2025.

Hall anchors Channel 58’s Saturday morning newscast, along with her reporting shifts and fill-in anchor duties. She came to Milwaukee from Madison, where she was an anchor-reporter for two years at WMTV-TV; before that, she was a reporter-anchor at WEAU-TV in Eau Claire.