RAD

“Our mission is quality, well-maintained homes for people of limited means, and we are doing everything we can to make sure folks know that we're not wavering from that mission,” said Minneapolis Public Housing Authority (MPHA) Interim Executive Director/CEO Tracey Scott in an interview with MPR, Minnesota’s public radio station.

​The story, which was posted online and broadcast on July 30, explores MPHA’s use of the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program to finance the rehabilitation of the Elliot Twins high-rise apartments and address MPHA’s capital needs. In addition to quotes from residents eager for community improvements that will be made possible with RAD, the story includes validation for the program from Matt Murphy of NYU’s Furman Center and the National Housing Law Project’s Deborah Thrope who said, “[RAD] is the only game in town right now for the rehabilitation and preservation of this housing. That is absolutely true.”

In “Austin Goes All in with RAD” Affordable Housing Finance’s Donna Kimura covers the Housing Authority of the City of Austin’s (HACA) progress in converting its 1,839 public housing units to project-based rental assistance through the RAD program. Now 80 percent complete after three years, HACA is on track to complete its portfolio conversion in the next year and a half.

 “RAD was used as a tool to essentially make meaningful and significant improvements for the residents that we serve,” HACA COO Sylvia Blanco told Affordable Housing Finance. “Under the traditional public housing resource and capital fund program, it would have taken decades to make the improvements. We’ve been able to do it in a fraction of the time.”

HACA has engaged a variety of partners and financing strategies during this process, most notably working with Fannie Mae to help finance 13 of HACA’s 16 RAD conversions thus far and using 4% and 9% Low-Income Housing Tax Credits.

Read Affordable Housing Finance’s Article

From Multi-Housing News:

Sixteen Manhattan public housing properties will be the latest developments to get much-needed repairs as part of the New York City Housing Authority’s Permanent Affordability Commitment Together (PACT) program. The improvements, that will impact more than 2,900 residents, will include new bathrooms, kitchens and flooring in apartments as well as replacements of heating systems and full elevator rehabs.

Residents of the 1,718 apartments will be allowed to remain while the renovations and upgrades are made to the units and common areas. Major enhancements to the buildings’ security, elevator and heating systems will be prioritized for each development, as well as other needs identified by residents, during a collaborative process that will take place over the coming months.

Read Multi-Housing News' article "Upgrades Ahead for 16 Manhattan Public Housing Properties," featuring the New York City Housing Authority.

From LOCAL 12/WKRC-TV:

Upgrades are coming to the region’s largest affordable housing provider. Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority or CMHA says it’s starting to address more than $190 million in much-needed improvements. This will impact the lives of families in our spotlight on childhood poverty a Cincinnati Crisis.

Julian Williams showed us around his new place. “Not everything is where it needs to be. Yeah a great many things that are still packed,” Williams said.

Williams, his wife and two teenagers moved out of their Sutter View apartment into a temporary one – because their place is on the renovation list. The new Sutter View complex will have 100 nice units undergo a facelift at the cost of $14 million.

CMHA said this is just the start of a $190 million renovation paid for by the rental assistance demonstration, or RAD, program

“It’s not just bricks and sticks, we are going to make the properties nicer and some of the capital improvements is how are we helping to improve and change people’s lives through bricks and sticks,” said CMHA President Greg Johnson.

Read LOCAL 12/WKRC-TV's article "Housing authority investing $190 million in much-needed improvements," featuring the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority.

From The Virgin Islands Consortium:

"The Virgin Islands housing development’s entire portfolio is set to undergo a major overhaul over the course of the next several years. Robert Graham, executive director of the Virgin Islands Housing Authority (V.I.H.A.), said he and his team recently met with Governor Albert Bryan along with the governor’s territorial director of disaster recovery, Adrienne Williams-Octalien, to review the Bryan administration’s understanding of V.I.H.A.’s portfolio repositioning plan. The plan outlines demolition, relocation, and rebuilding of various housing units across the territory."

Read The Virgin Islands Consortium's article "Housing Authority Plans Territory-Wide Public Housing Demolition, Relocation and Rebuild Over Next Several Years," featuring the Virgin Islands Housing Authority.