From the St. Thomas Source:
The Virgin Islands Housing Authority unveiled a portfolio plan for lawmakers that spans 10 years, requires an investment of $830 million, will generate or impact 3,300 jobs and create more than 2,700 affordable apartments between St. Thomas and St. Croix.
During a hearing Wednesday of the Senate Committee on Housing, Transportation and Telecommunication, VIHA Executive Director Robert Graham updated lawmakers on five matters: the safety of residents in public housing, the Authority’s new preventative maintenance program, demolition of the storm-damaged Tutu High-Rise Apartments, the implementation of the portfolio plan and the Urban Land Institute’s Advisory Services program that issued a panel report with recommendations of how to use the funding from the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Relief program “as a catalyst for revitalization of public housing.”
“The challenge for VIHA is to advocate for a change in the territorial mindset that the current public housing communities, as originally designed, are appropriate for today’s standard of living. We have an opportunity to transform the entire old public housing portfolio to lower density, energy-independent, attractive, amenity-rich environments designed to support family self-sufficiency,” Graham said.
Read the St. Thomas Source's article "Housing Authority Gives Senate a Glimpse of What’s to Come," featuring the Virgin Islands Housing Authority.