CLPHA Press Room

On December 4, 2019, the New York Housing Conference (NYHC) awarded Joseph Shuldiner, executive director of the Municipal Housing Authority for the City of Yonkers (MHACY), with their 2019 Clara Fox Award for Outstanding Achievement.

The award honors Shuldiner’s decades of service to the public and affordable housing industry. He held several positions at the NYC Department of Housing Preservation & Development from 1973 to 1986, was the general manager of the New York City Housing Authority from 1986 to 1990, and was the executive director of the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles from 1990 to 1993. In 1993 he was nominated by President Bill Clinton to serve as HUD’s Assistant Secretary of Public and Indian Housing, a position he held until 1995. From 1995 to 1999, Shuldiner was the executive director of the Chicago Housing Authority, and from 1999 until 2007 he was the president/senior partner of his own PHA consulting company Joseph Shuldiner & Associates, Inc. In 2007, Shuldiner became the executive director of MHACY, where he has led the housing authority’s complete portfolio conversion through the RAD program, helping MHACY to secure around $350 million through LIHTCs, bonds, and other funding sources to finance this process.

“I think his legacy is that all the places he’s touched are the better for it, and we will have these units far into the future because he made that contribution,” said NYCHA Chair & CEO Gregory Russ of Shuldiner’s legacy in a video about Shuldiner’s career.

“The thing I’m the most proud of is that I’ve tried to engage the residents everywhere, and I understand the concept that we’re in service, and I hope that a lot of what I’ve done has made people’s lives better,” said Shuldiner.

CLPHA congratulates Mr. Shuldiner on this prestigious award and thanks him for his decades of leadership in the public and affordable housing industry.

On December 31, 2019 HUD announced more than $79 million in Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) grants to nearly 700 public housing authorities nationwide. FSS grants help public housing authorities hire service coordinators who connect public housing residents with local programs and services with the goal of increasing residents’ earnings and decreasing their dependencies on public assistance.

From Fort Worth Housing Solutions' press release:

Fort Worth Housing Solutions and its developer partner, AMCAL, have broken ground on the first phase of a 520-unit, “Class-A” apartment community adjacent to AllianceTexas.

Named for Barbara Holston, the housing authority’s president for 23 years, The Holston will be comprised of four, three-story, garden-style buildings set on a 12.32-acre site.  The first apartment homes are expected to be ready for occupancy in January 2021 and the entire property completed by June.  Fifty percent of units will be market-rate and 50 percent will be priced for households earning up to 80 percent Area Median Income (AMI).

“We are pleased to bring our first multi-family property to the Alliance area,” said Mary-Margaret Lemons, president of Fort Worth Housing Solutions. “The area’s phenomenal growth is generating more and more job opportunities, and the growing workforce needs housing that is both reasonably priced and conveniently located.”  More than 500 companies and 60,000 jobs are based in AllianceTexas, according to a company press release. 

Barbara Holston was a visionary leader who steered Fort Worth Housing Solutions when it began to acquire, rehabilitate and develop affordably priced housing more than two decades ago, so it is fitting that a property be named in her honor, Lemons said.

“I’m pleased and excited that Fort Worth Housing Solutions continues to develop the partnerships that create this type of high-quality housing for the citizens of Fort Worth,” said Holston, adding that she feels “tremendously honored” to have a property named for her.

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Renderings of The Holston

From The News Tribune:

Two local entities have partnered to help seniors and disabled residents in Tacoma gain affordable housing.

On Wednesday, Tacoma Housing Authority and Cascade Park Communities announced a partnership to help make available 145 affordable assisted-living units.

“Assisted living facilities that accept Medicaid are near impossible to find in Tacoma and Pierce County,” said THA executive director Michael Mirra in Wednesday’s news release announcing details of the plan.

“Partnering with Cascade Park Communities is a very good use of a scarce housing dollars because it makes much-needed services available to a population that often cannot afford them.”

Read The News Tribune's article "Rental subsidies for 145 units made available for seniors and disabled in Tacoma," featuring the Tacoma Housing Authority.

From the Seattle Housing Authority's press release:

The Seattle Housing Authority is the recipient of a 2020 Uber Community Impact Initiative grant worth $20,000, which will primarily be used by residents participating in SHA’s youth engagement programs. 

“The Seattle Housing Authority appreciates support from Uber in meeting the transportation needs of our young residents, who might otherwise not be able to participate in important development opportunities,” said SHA Executive Director, Andrew Lofton. 

In 2019, Uber provided a $10,000 grant to help SHA residents. More than 550 Uber rides, covering more than 3,300 miles, transported seniors with mobility issues to healthcare appointments and delivered youth to career exploration events, job readiness trainings and life skills workshops.

Read the Seattle Housing Authority's press release.