NEWS. Massachusetts Chapter National Association of Housing & Redevelopment Officials June 2015

Transcription

1 Massachusetts Chapter National Association of Housing & Redevelopment Officials June 2015 NEWS Published by Massachusetts NAHRO Boston, MA Vol. XXXIX No Delegates Participate in MassNAHRO Annual Conference in Hyannis The 2015 MassNAHRO Annual Conference was a great success with over 300 delegates in attendance and 18 workshops and panel presentations. The keynote speaker was Senate President Pro Tem Marc Pacheco of Taunton. He urged the membership to follow through on the implementation of Thomas Connelly,, MassNAHRO; Chrystal Kornegay, Undersecretary, DHCD; Colleen Doherty, President, MassNAHRO; and Representative Kevin Honan, House Chairman of Joint Committee on Housing the new systems intended to assist local housing managers and Board Members, as authorized in the new local housing authority law. He recommended close attention be paid to the fine details to ensure that the changes that are implemented through new regulations reflect the intention of the Legislature. He stressed that often changes deviate from the law. As the lead sponsor of Senate 612, President Pacheco pledged to stand with LHA officials in ensuring that provisions ABC do not become implemented as regulations DEF. On Monday, nationally known public housing expert Jeff Lines shared his thoughts on future trends in affordable housing, while also indicating where the rest of the nation is on collaboration and consortia. He noted other states are watching Massachusetts to see if the shared function innovations in Chapter 235 are successful and aid local management and oversight of public housing. He stressed that the ability of government to maintain and fund public housing and Section 8 vouchers is steadily declining, and has caused some states to abandon the core mission of providing housing for very low income families. Given the make up of the Congress, increases in resources simply are not there. Speaking at lunch on Monday was the House Chairman of the Joint Committee on Housing, Representative Kevin Honan of Brighton-Allston. Chairman Honan stressed the importance of the partnership between his Committee and the local officials dedicated to providing low income housing opportunities in their communities. He noted that public housing is an irreplaceable asset, founded by local advocates who got their community to establish a housing authority, then built developments in their neighborhoods. Following his remarks, Chairman Honan received a standing ovation for championing the preservation of local public housing. The delegates were then addressed by the top public housing official in the Baker-Polito Administration, DHCD Undersecretary Chrystal Kornegay. The Undersecretary stressed the goals of the new administration to improve public housing oversight, review obsolete regulations, and try new approaches to housing the homeless. Ms. Kornegay noted the importance of DHCD and housing authority officials continuing to work together on meaningful enhancements to the public housing program. In general, a sense of partnership pervaded the sessions, workshops and networking events. The DHCD Resource Room was well attended on both Monday and Tuesday. The traditional Past President Memorial Scholarship luncheon featured the awarding of $39,500 in scholarships to 10 deserving students. This year s conference was the best in all aspects in several years. Thank you to the 55 exhibitors, the 310 delegates, Steve Carvalho and Sarah Glassman of DHCD, Bob Senator Marc Pacheco Cwieka and Charles Francis of HUD, plus all the moderators and panelists that made this event informative and timely. Addressing the delegates in individual workshops were the Director of the State Office of Campaign and Political Finance, Michael Sullivan; and the Inspector General of the Commonwealth, Glenn Cunha. Special kudos to the Professional Development Committee and to the excellent MassNAHRO staff, Donna Brown-Rego, Jennifer Polito, and Mike Lazdowsky for doing a tremendous job once again for the Association.

2 2 Massachusetts NAHRO Board of Directors VICE PRESIDENT - Large Walter McGuire Waltham Housing Authority VICE PRESIDENT - Small Leila Botsford Mashpee Housing Authority PRESIDENT Lisa Audette Franklin Housing Authority VICE PRESIDENT - Commissioners Kelley Cronin Acton Housing Authority VICE PRESIDENT - Medium Joanne Toomey Dedham Housing Authority VICE PRESIDENT - CR & D Matthew Mainville Holyoke Housing Authority TREASURER Daniel Kelly Westfi eld Housing Authority DIRECTORS - Terms expiring 2016 James Comer, Director of Property Mgmt., Cambridge Housing Authority Dan Finn,, Greenfi eld Housing Authority David Hedison,, Chelmsford Housing Authority Candace Loewen, Executive DIrector, Millis Housing Authority Dan Ouellette,, North Attleboro Housing Authority Peter Proulx,, Leominster Housing Authority DIRECTORS - Terms expiring 2017 Brian Costello,, Watertown Housing Authority Connie Desbiens,, Dartmouth Housing Authority Colleen Doherty,, Taunton Housing Authority Mark Roy,, Canton Housing Authority Karen Rudd,, Bridgewater Housing Authority Jean Vincent,, Charlton Housing Authority EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Thomas J. Connelly, Jr. OPERATIONS MANAGER Jennifer M. Polito IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT Richard Leco Commissioner North Attleboro Housing Authority DEPUTY DIRECTOR Donna M. Brown-Rego, Esq. MEMBER SERVICES COORD. Michael P. Lazdowsky President s Corner June 2015 The first priority as the new President of MassNAHRO is to introduce myself to my colleagues. I work at the Franklin Housing Authority where I will celebrate my 20th year as Director this month. I have been on the MassNAHRO Board for several years as a Director and as Treasurer, and have served on a variety of committees and sub-committees. Additionally, I am finishing a 2-year term as the President of the Southeastern Massachusetts s Association (SMEDA) this month. I am proud to work in public housing and passionate about our cause to provide safe and affordable housing to people of low income. I am pleased to have a knowledgeable and active Board at FHA who support participation in MassNAHRO. This has enabled us to be more aware of current housing issues and to be better advocates for the population we serve. Thank you to Colleen Doherty of Taunton Housing for stepping into the seat of MassNAHRO President in our time of need. Colleen is one of the most intelligent and qualified professionals in our field, and we are so fortunate to have her leadership. I am honored to represent my housing colleagues and our residents and applicants as President of MassNAHRO. I look forward to the upcoming year. I promise to represent and serve you well. With sincere thanks for your vote of support and confidence, Thank you to our 2015 Annual Conference & Exhibi on Sponsors MassNAHRO Insurance Group, Inc Kopelman & Paige, PC MMDT Driscoll & Driscoll, PC North Shore Execu ve Directors Assoc. Automa c Laundry S.E. Mass. Execu ve Directors Assoc. Execu-Tech Consultants Western Mass. Execu ve Directors Assoc. People's United Bank Central Mass. Execu ve Directors Assoc.

3 June 2015 Budget Request For Local Ch. 235 Costs Rejected The Massachusetts Senate did not adopt an amendment, proposed by Senator James Eldridge of Acton and co-sponsored by Senate Housing Chair Senator Linda Dorcena Forry of Boston, which would have provided $1 million in the FY 2016 state budget specifically for local costs associated with the implementation of Ch. 235, the Local Housing Authority Act of Amendment 471 was filed by Senator Eldridge as the new housing law passed last August contained no new resources, despite the additional workload that implementation would impose on municipal housing professionals. On the positive side, the House Budget for Fiscal 2016 does include $500,000 for those local costs, due to acceptance of an amendment sponsored by State Administration and Regulatory Oversight Committee Chair Peter Kocot and Joint Committee on Housing Chair Kevin Honan. Thank you to all the housing authority officials who advocated on behalf of the amendments in both the Senate and House. Additional resources are still possible as the two versions of the 2016 state budget go now to a conference committee to resolve any differences. Senate Level Funds Subsidy The Massachusetts Senate has voted to level fund public housing operating subsidy again at $64 million for fiscal The same amount was requested by Governor Baker. Funding for operating subsidy, required due to tenant rents being capped by law, has been unchanged since fiscal State law requires the legislature to make up the funding shortfall between the capped rents and the actual costs of managing and maintaining public housing. Because rents and subsidy both are so low, DHCD must impose unrealistic spending caps on LHA state-aided public housing program budgets. The annual budget caps are contained in the DHCD budget guidelines issued each year in July to all LHAs. Two-thirds of state-aided public housing (33,000 apartments) is occupied by the elderly and disabled. The average rent is approximately $350 a month with rents much lower in family developments in urban core authorities. The minimum state rent by law is $5 a month. The federal minimum rent is $50. Public housing apartments are still the most cost effective means of providing decent, safe and sanitary housing when compared to all other affordable housing programs. The Legislature needs to increase the commitment to subsidy in housing the very low income seniors, families, disabled and veterans of the Commonwealth. HUD operating subsidy appropriated by Congress for federally-aided public housing apartments in Massachusetts is 40% higher than that appropriated by the state. Municipal housing officials and residents continue to struggle with the challenge of chronic underfunding by the Legislature. Insufficient resources and spending caps are the primary reason apartments to go vacant through no fault of the local housing authority. New Officers and Directors Elected in Hyannis The 2015 officers and directors, elected by the membership at the Annual Election in Hyannis on May 18, 2015 are: Officers - One-Year Terms beginning on June 1, 2015: President - Lisa Audette of Franklin Vice Pres. Large LHAs - Walter McGuire of Waltham Vice Pres. Medium LHAs - Joanne Toomey of Dedham Vice Pres. Small LHAs - Leila Botsford of Mashpee Vice Pres. Commissioners - Kelley Cronin of Acton Vice Pres. CR & D - Matthew Mainville of Holyoke Treasurer - Dan Kelly of Westfield Directors - Two-Year Terms beginning June 1, 2015: Brian Costello of Watertown Connie Desbiens of Dartmouth Mark Roy of Canton Karen Rudd of Bridgewater Jean Vincent of Charlton Colleen Doherty of Taunton Vacancy - For a one-year term beginning June 1, 2015: Candace Loewen of Millis/Medfield Continuing on the Board of Directors until May 2016 are James Comer of Cambridge, Dan Finn of Greenfield, David Hedison of Chelmsford, Dan Ouellete of North Attleboro, and Peter Proulx of Leominster. Six new members have joined the Board over the last two years. Interest in serving has never been higher, and the Nominating Committee makes every effort to be as inclusive as possible in addressing diversity, geographical distribution and differing size agencies. It is the goal of the Committee to sooner or later place everyone who expresses an interest in serving. MassNAHRO is fortunate to have so many members willing to work so hard in serving their professional association. Each officer and director is required to take on additional committee and conference duties beyond serving on the Board, which they do willingly. Such is not commonplace nationally. Congratulations and thank you to all who serve MassNAHRO. NERC-NAHRO 2015 Annual Conference & Exhibition June 21-24, 2015 Sea Crest Hotel, Falmouth, MA Still time to register! Visit 3

4 4 Scholarship Fundraising Generates Over $30,000 Each year at its Past Presidents lunchon at the Annual Conference, the MassNAHRO Scholarship Committee awards scholarships to deserving students from across the Commonwealth. This year $39,500 was awarded to 10 students which included LHA residents, LHA staff and family members. June 2015 The happy surprise of the Conference was the success of the Murder Mystery, which generated $800 and a million laughs. Congratulations to the MassNAHRO Not Ready for Prime-time Past Presidents: Jack Mather formerly of Quincy, Steve Merritt of Norwood, Rick Leco of North Attleobro, Brian Cloonan formerly of Brookline, Joan Pimental formerly of Plymouth, Ray Murphy formerly of Holyoke and Ed Santos formerly of Natick The MassNAHRO Insurance Group Board of Directors provided a record $22,000 donation from its budget. Fundraising activities included a number of events run by members of the Scholarship and Professional Development Committees. Among the contributions was $5,000 raised by the Past Presidents Memorial Golf Tournament, $1,900 from the proceeds of the Silent Auction, $1,900 from the 50/50 raffle, with special thanks to Dan Ouellette of North Attleboro who very generously took just $600 and donated $650 back to the Scholarship Fund. David Hedison 2015 Member of the Year The of the Chelmsford Housing Authority, David Hedison was named the 2015 MassNAHRO Member of the Year in ceremonies at the Annual Conference in Hyannis on May 18. The Member of the Year Award is presented For Exceptional Leadership, Commitment and Service to Massachusetts NAHRO. Mr. Hedison has made substantial contributions to the achievements of the Association by serving on the Board of Directors, as Vice-President for Community Development, as a Director of the MassNAHRO Insurance Group, as an active member of the Housing Committee that meets monthly with DHCD, as the MassNAHRO delegate to the Designer Selection Committee and the Regional Innovation Working Group, as a member of the Contract Guidelines Committee, and as the lead member of the MassNAHRO Veterans Housing Task Force. In addition to all the above, David works aggressively to develop new affordable housing through affiliated non-profit development corporations. David is always there when the Association needs an expert, experienced and talented professional to represent it and to make meaningful contributions to every initiative in Scholarship winners from left to right: Keisha Bailey from Worcester, Sarah Strangie from Sudbury, Charmagne Flammond from Yarmouth, Thess Elysee from Medford, Emily Olsen from Wilbraham and Cesar Cruz from Holyoke. Anything Players. A very fun time was put on for a standing room only crowd for a very worthy cause. They must do it again next year. Special thanks go to Chris Evans and Betty Burnham for their aggressive marketing of 50/50 raffle tickets, to Mark Roy and Connie Desbiens and their cast of housing thespians, to the 34 golfers in Sunday s tournament, to the donors of the 18 silent auction items, and to the Scholarship Committee itself, chaired by Dan Kelly, for once again doing its candidate evaluation and recommendation job so expertly. The young students did themselves and their parents proud in their acceptance remarks at lunch on May 19. which he is involved. Congratulations to David Hedison for the excellent work he does for the Association, for the residents of the Chelmsford H o u s i n g Authority, and in working productively with DHCD to improve public housing. He is smart, witty, dedicated and a caring gentleman. MassNAHRO is Colleen Doherty, President, MassNAHRO; David Hedison,, Chelmsford H.A.; and Tom Connelly,, MassNAHRO fortunate to have someone as truly exceptional as David as our 2015 Member of the Year. Congratulations, David, and thank you.

5 June 2015 Insurance Group Annual Election Held in Hyannis The MassNAHRO Workers Compensation Insurance Group Annual Meeting and Election was held on May18 in Hyannis. Notice of the meeting and the proposed slate of candidates were sent all member housing authorities in the MassNAHRO newsletter. Re-elected to serve on the Board was Connie Desbiens of Dartmouth and Swansea. Newly elected was Matthew Mainville of the Holyoke Housing Authority. Both will serve until May 31, The Board then elected officers for Elected Chairman was Steve Merritt of the Norwood Housing Authority. The Clerk is Connie Desbiens of the Dartmouth Housing Authority, and serving as Treasurer will be Dan Kelly of the Westfield Housing Authority. The last item of business was a brief discussion on the distribution of dividends for MassNAHRO appreciates the time and effort contributed by these unpaid volunteers on the board in monitoring and setting policy for the MassNAHRO Workers Compensation Insurance Group. There are now 212 Housing Authority agency members, including new members the Canton Housing Authority and the Franklin County Regional Housing Authority. Group bylaws, dividends, finances, actuarial and program administration are all supervised and approved by the Massachusetts Department of Insurance and the HUD Financial Management Division in Washington. The Group is exempt from both federal and state competitive bid requirements. The remaining 32 non-group member housing authorities are invited to join if they meet the underwriting guidelines. Board Member Certification Program Professional Relationships Saturday, June 13 Danvers H.A. - 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM Finance Wednesday, June 17 Teresa Ewald, CPA Winchendon H.A. - 5:30 PM - 9:00 PM Ethics Saturday, July 11 Falmouth H.A. - 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM Attendance carries credits towards Board Member Certification. For information including registration materials visit the Professional Development page at President s Award Honors Connie Desbiens At ceremonies held as part of the 2015 MassNAHRO Annual Conference, Connie Desbiens was awarded the MassNAHRO President s Award for 2015 by President Colleen Doherty. Each year the award honors extrodinary accomplishments worthy of recognition by all members of the Association. Ms. Desbiens epitomizes what the President s Award is all about. She has served on the Board of Directors for five years and is currently Clerk of the MassNAHRO Insurance Group. She is the Chair of the Professional Development/Member Services Committee, and a member of the MassNAHRO Housing Committee. Connie is also a MassNAHRO delegate to the DHCD Working Group focused on Training and Technical Assistance, established to help educate and inform Board Members, managers and residents alike. In addition, Connie is co-chair of the Small Housing Authority Task Force, 1st Vice President of the Southeastern Massachusetts Executive Director Association (SMEDA) and member of the Small Housing Authority Directors Organization (SHADO). Connie served on the MassNAHRO Veterans Housing Task Force, and Colleen Doherty, President, MassNAHRO, pictured with Connie Desbiens, Executive Director, Dartmouth H.A. successfully developed 9 units of new housing for local veterans. Ms. Desbiens is the of the Dartmouth Housing Authority and Management Agent of the Swansea Housing. She is an extremely hard worker whose dedication and commitment to public housing is truly exceptional. Congratulations to Connie Desbiens, the outstanding recipient of the 2015 MassNAHRO President s Award. DHCD Capital Planning System Training Sessions IN-PERSON SESSIONS Intro to CPS - 9:30-4:00 June 3 - Woburn June 9 - Brockton June 19 - Holyoke MINI-SESSIONS VIA WEB Creating Projects 9:30-11:30 Updating Inventory, Closing/Archiving Projects 12:30-2:30 June 17 & June 24 An enrollment packet was ed to al LHAs on April 9 with registration details. Questions? Contact Kathy Arnold at Cybersense at karnold@cybersensetraining.com. 5

6 6 Special Senate Commission to Study Housing Policy Senate President Stanley Rosenberg has appointed a Special Commission on Housing to engage in a comprehensive review of housing policy in the Commonwealth. The goal of the Commission will be to bring together a group with housing policy expertise, representing a variety of interests, to develop a 21st century housing policy reform measures that are comprehensive and inclusive. Chairing the Special Commission will be the Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Housing, Senator Linda Dorcena Forry of Boston. The Commission Vice Chair is the Senate Majority Leader, Senator Harriette L. Chandler of Worcester. The Commission is made up of members of the Senate, the Baker Administration, advocates, academics and business representatives. MassNAHRO has been invited to appoint a representative to the Special Senate Commission on Housing. The first meeting was attended by the Secretary of the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development Jay Ash. The key objectives for the state public housing program include resources for new production on surplus buildable land, provision of meaningful supportive service programs to preserve tenancies and promote resident upward mobility, plus long overdue regulation reform. The Committee will meet again on June 10. Recommendations and suggestions on public housing policy are welcome at tconnelly@massnahro.org. Massachusetts Public Housing Administrator (MPHA) Certification Legal Elements June 5 Auburn H.A. Professional Relationships/Procurement July 10 Falmouth H.A. Personnel August 28 Franklin H.A. For information including registration materials visit the Upcoming Events page at June 2015 Filling Your LHA Public Relations Void Most housing authorities have not yet taken advantage of the professional public relations assistance available to them by MassNAHRO. One of the primary reasons the legislation to eliminate local housing authorities got traction last year was that many local legislators, municipal officials and citizens had no idea what their local housing authority did, who it served or why it was even necessary. LHAs are notoriously bad communicators. Given the ever increasing work load, it is understandable that often administrators do not have time for public relations and community outreach. Expert assistance is available as a service to MassNAHRO member administrators or boards upon request. Topics include proven techniques of fostering relationships with local media, drafting of press releases, and friendly use of new online resources. As always, assistance is available to the membership in responding effectively to local crisis situations, and in drafting local press releases. Use this resource to tell your community the story of its local public housing authority, what it does, who it serves and how housing paired with supportive services can prolong independence, especially the attention given to seniors aging in place. The experience of the last two years emphasizes how important public perception is to the preservation of local housing authorities. Contact our public relations expert, Glenn Briere at gbcantab@rocketmail.com to get help with a press release, insight in determining what is news-worthy, and how to improve your LHA s public image. Your dues payment includes this service. Need references? Try any of the LHA s in Arlington, Athol, Attleboro, Bellingham, Canton, Chelmsford, Dartmouth, Dedham, Fairhaven, Foxboro, Gloucester, Greenfield, Hanson, Hudson, Leominster, Marlborough, Mashpee, Middleboro, Millbury, Newton, North Attleborough, Norton, Norwood, Pembroke, Revere, Salisbury, Sharon, Shrewsbury, Somerset, Springfield, Sudbury, Taunton, Topsfield, Wayland, Webster and West Springfield, among others. Add your LHA to the list of PR savvy authorities. Pathways for the Housing Professional - A Customer Service Training Attorneys Jeffrey and Jonathan Driscoll from Driscoll & Driscoll, PC will present this important session. Thursday, June 4 - Danvers H.A. Friday, June 12 - Franklin H.A. Friday, June 26 - Grafton H.A. Registration fee: $125 Session will run from 9AM - 3PM. For information including registration materials visit the 'Professional Development' page at

7 June Massachusetts Public Housing Administrator (MPHA) Graduates Maureen Cayer - Agawam H.A. Jen McNabb - Arlington H.A. Bobbi Richards - Barnstable H.A. Pamela Rogers - Belchertown H.A. Robert Kachinski - Chicopee H.A. Adam Brothers - Dedham H.A. Deborah Walker - Easthampton H.A. Joseph Hart - Haverhill H.A. Anne Darcy - Holyoke H.A. Tammy Murray-Cousins - Kingston H.A. James Holt - Melrose H.A. Carol Smith - Millbury H.A. Margaret Hurd - Millis H.A. Debra Jordan - Needham H.A. Neil Cohen - Offi ce of the Inspector General Barbara Hubacheck - Waltham H.A. Charlene Whitney - Ware H.A. Board Member Certification Graduates Nicholas Mitropoulos - Arlington H.A. Nicholas Bagas - Bridgewater H.A. Robert T. Hogan - East Bridgewater H.A. Charlene Kaye - Foxborough H.A. Phyllis A. May - Framingham H.A. Paul Czynodel - Ludlow H.A. Jean McDonald - Marshfi eld H.A. Gail Drouin Methuen H.A. Chris Tremblay - North Adams H.A. Jim Dinsel - Norton H.A. Judith Langone - Norwood H.A. Donna Clark - Raynham H.A. Robert Demers - Tewksbury H.A. Kathy Egan - Wellesley H.A. Veronica Beaulieu - Westport H.A. Denise Leonardo - Westport H.A. Thank you for the generous contributions to the MassNAHRO 2015 Past Presidents Scholarship Fund MassNAHRO Insurance Group, Inc. CMS Associates, Inc. Guyder Hurley, PC BC Stewart & Associates Bill O'Brien, Citizens Bank Brian S. Hickey Associates Chistolini & DeSimone, PC Citizens Bank, N.A. Dave Barss Memorial Golf Outing D&V/Mainsail Donna Brown-Rego Driscoll & Driscoll, PC Easthampton H.A. Fenton, Ewald & Associates, PC Franklin H.A. Gary L. DePace, CPA, PC HAB, Inc. Harvey Building Products Jennifer Polito John S. Sullivan CPA Laurie and David Matosky MAHAMS MassNAHRO MHQ Milne, Shaw & Robillard, PC Resort & Conference Center at Hyannis Richard Conlon, CPA Rick Leco Roca, Inc. Roland and Louise Moussally Sherry Guilbault SMEDA Steve Merritt

8 8 c a l e n d a r trainings, conferences & events JUNE 12 Pathways for the Housing Professional Franklin H.A. Atty. Jeffrey Driscoll will present! Visit to register today! JUNE 13 Board Member Certification Program Topic: Professional Relationships Danvers H.A. Atty. Jeffrey Driscoll will present! Visit to register today! JUNE NERC/NAHRO Annual Conference & Exhibition Sea Crest Resort, North Falmouth Visit for agenda, conference materials and hotel accommodations! June 2015 JULY 10 Massachusetts Public Housing Administrator (MPHA) Certification Topic: Professional Relationships/ Procurement Falmouth Housing Authority Atty. Jeffrey Driscoll will present! Visit for registration information! JULY 11 Board Member Certification Program Topic: Ethics Atty. Jeffrey Driscoll will present! Visit to register today! NOVEMBER Fall Conference Framingham Sheraton Save the date! Massachusetts Chapter National Association of Housing & Redevelopment Offi cials 11 Beacon Street, Suite 722 Boston, MA Follow us on ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED