jonetta rose barras: DC officials fiddle while public housing descends

“The pace of deterioration is accelerating,” DC Housing Authority director Tyrone Garrett recently warned the DC Council during an oversight hearing. With 41 properties, 8,000 units and more than 20,000 residents, the DCHA is the largest provider of affordable housing in the city.

DC may think it has a housing crisis. But if the city doesn’t quickly and aggressively deal with the challenges facing DCHA — crumbling buildings and dwindling finances — it could have a full-blown housing emergency. 

That reality requires a robust and muscular response from District government leaders and politicians — possibly including the appointment of a special master, construction czar or receiver to oversee DCHA, particularly the renovation and maintenance of properties that are riddled with housing code violations. (If DCHA were not considered an appendage of the government, there is little doubt it would have already come under assault by DC Attorney General Karl Racine, who has taken legal action against several landlords whose properties have had conditions similar to those in DCHA rental units.)

In wrestling with DCHA problems, District officials should also consider creating a new financing stream much like that established for the Housing Production Trust Fund. They might also use the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act, allowing some existing residents the option of purchasing their buildings in partnership with established private developers.

My latter proposals may not sit well with Garrett. He’s not enamored with the idea of the takeover, however. “My background is as a special master. I’ve done that for housing authorities,” he told me during an interview earlier this week. He asserted that he has a “great team” with the capacity to move forthrightly with renovating the targeted 14 properties over the next seven to 10 years, as identified in the agency’s transformation plan. 

“I think we can get through this,” he added. 

Is it just me who sees a problem here? Seven years seems like an awfully long time. What’s more, another 27 properties would be in development purgatory throughout that period. 

Garrett said the agency has a “comprehensive road map” that includes daily maintenance of the buildings in its portfolio. Where conditions deteriorate and residents have to be moved, he said, they will be offered other living quarters or vouchers that can be used in the open market.

We all understand that a Manhattanization of DC is underway. It’s very difficult, therefore, for working-class residents to find housing inside the city limits — even with a government subsidy.

“I am hoping the city provides substantial resources on a sustained basis,” said Neil Albert, who chairs the DCHA board of commissioners. “We are open to exploring any option that moves the Housing Authority forward.”

From my vantage point, District officials seem to be engaged in gabfests as the prime option, complemented by impotent legislative proposals from the council. For example, at-large DC Council member Anita Bonds, chair of the Committee on Housing and Neighborhood Revitalization, introduced a bill that would establish a task force to oversee implementation of DCHA’s 20-Year Transformation Plan; she also wants to expand the number of positions on the agency’s board of commissioners. Ward 1’s Brianne Nadeau proposed protections for current residents to prevent displacement, although it’s too little, too late — displacement has been happening for the past decade. 

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump just proposed in his 2021 budget a 15% cut for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the federal agency that provides funding support and oversight of housing authorities across the country. The federal government technically owns the properties here in DC and elsewhere.

“Over the years because [DCHA] has been a federal entity, there has not been the kind of urgency we find ourselves in,” Bonds told me, adding that she is confident that Garrett “can move this along; we meet every two weeks.”

See what I mean about seemingly endless discussions?

In fairness, legislators, led by Chairman Phil Mendelson, tussled last spring with DC Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey DeWitt to gain approval to pull money from the bloated coffers of the independent agency Events DC, which manages the District’s convention center and sports and entertainment facilities. When the dust settled, DCHA received $24.5 million — a drop in the proverbial bucket, when compared with the $2.2 billion needed to reconstruct or renovate all of its 41 properties.

Mayor Muriel Bowser is expected to submit her fiscal year 2021 budget proposal to the council on March 19. It’s unclear how much she might propose spending on DCHA. In email correspondence with me, acting Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development John Falcicchio confirmed the mayor’s commitment to affordable housing. He said the administration has been working with the Housing Authority, the council and the CFO to “assess the transformation plan and determine what resources will be needed over the next decade.” 

“That is where our focus will remain in the weeks before the budget is presented to the council,” added Falcicchio.

Translation: Wait and see.

Garrett said he has obligated 60% of the $24.5 million allocated by the council. “Before the end of the third quarter, the remaining money will have been obligated. We have started the work,” he added, citing Judiciary House for senior citizens as an example. 

The fact that it’s taken so long just to obligate those funds — to say nothing of spending them — raises questions about the capacity of Garrett’s team to perform the swift and heavy lifting required. That takes me back to my point about the need for extraordinary action.

“We need someone like Allen Lew. Someone who won’t take ‘No’ for an answer and who can get the job done,” said one of several housing, municipal and development experts I spoke with during the past week, who requested anonymity in order to speak freely about DCHA and what needs to be done. “The Housing Authority needs a construction czar; [Lew] could be part of that.”

Lew helped build DC’s convention center. He managed construction of the Nationals baseball stadium under Mayor Anthony Williams. In Mayor Adrian Fenty’s administration, Lew managed the modernization of dozens of DC public schools. He went on to become city administrator under Mayor Vincent Gray. 

Lew has been criticized in some circles for trampling DC government procurement rules and regulations, while simultaneously praised for his results.

“Allen did a lot to get schools done. He moved the dial. However, I am not a big proponent for how he did it,” said one former government official. 

“The mayor should consider appointing a special master for three to five years,” said another former government official. That person would oversee a proactive maintenance program, ensure residents are well-served, and handle the extensive real estate portfolio, including renovation of properties in massive decline.

The special master’s success, the ex-official continued, would depend on a cash infusion. “The city has to put in more resources — $25 million is like spitting in the wind.” 

Back in the late 1990s, after public housing residents filed a lawsuit against the city, a receiver was appointed by the courts. David Gilmore — who, like Lew, has his critics and supporters — oversaw the restoration of DCHA and many of its properties. Working with Mayor Williams, he deployed a combination of strategies, including mixed-use development. 

Council member Bonds said she is “not in support of receivership,” adding, in Garrett’s defense, that he “comes with extensive financial background and he has good relations with HUD.” Further, she said, “It would not be a good thing for the local government to embrace the authority right now. That could affect our debt service.

“Once we have put things together, then maybe we could consider a takeover,” said Bonds, adding that she wishes improvements could be faster. She raised as possible solutions expediting permits and waiving some fees to developers that could have the ripple effect of reducing DCHA’s costs.

“I’m really hopeful. Give us a little more time to show we are doing things,” Bonds continued, echoing Garrett’s plea.

Am I the only person who thinks public housing residents have already waited too long?

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jonetta rose barras is an author and freelance journalist, covering national and local issues including politics, childhood trauma, public education, economic development and urban public policies. She can be reached at thebarrasreport@gmail.com.