Protestors crowd mayor's office after housing board moves to outsource Section 8 program

    MILWAUKEE (WDJT) -- A group of activists and public housing residents marched into Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson's office Friday, Oct. 11, calling on him to stop the housing authority board from outsourcing the city's Section 8 housing program to a Florida company.

Organizers from Common Ground and residents at properties belonging to the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee (HACM) said the board should not make such an impactful decision when three of the board's seven seats are currently vacant.

The board quietly called a special meeting Friday to vote on awarding the Section 8 contract just two days after delaying the vote at its regular monthly meeting amid loud protests.

Only one of the board's four current members, Vice Chair Brooke VandeBerg, attended Friday's meeting. The three others board members, President Sherri Daniels, Darian Luckett and Irma Yepez Klassen, joined virtually.

Critics have questioned the legitimacy of the board's current makeup because VandeBerg's term has expired and health problems have caused Daniels to hand control of recent meetings over to VandeBerg.

Ultimately, the board voted in support of a half-measure Friday: They authorized HACM to keep negotiating a contract with Tampa-based CVR Associates, Inc. but opted against giving final approval to any agreement with the Florida firm.

HACM Executive Director Willie Hines, who the board oversees, told reporters he believed the four-member board had good reason to move ahead with its Section 8 plans.

"[What waiting] would infer is they don't have the capacity to make the decisions to move forward now," Hines said. "So, I feel comfortable, and I think they feel comfortable, as well."

Betty Newton, the lead resident organizer at HACM's Becher Court apartments, told reporters the board shouldn't take any action on the matter until all seven seats are filled.

"It is highly important to me," Newton said of waiting until the board is fully restored. "It is highly because I think the four that are there have just been letting Willie get away with everything. So, we need some new people there to hold him accountable."

The demonstrators marched into the Johnson's office after the vote and demanded to meet with either the mayor or a senior staff member. A receptionist told them no senior staff members were in the office.

How we got here

After finding widespread fiscal mismanagement at HACM, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) ordered HACM to turn over its Section 8 program to an outside vendor.

In Milwaukee, more than 6,700 low-income households receive Section 8 vouchers, which allow them to pay rent for private apartments while being responsible for 30% of the cost.

Milwaukee's Section 8 program currently provides about $42 million worth of rent assistance. Whoever runs the program is in line to get about $4 million to cover administrative costs.

Hines and other HACM leaders defended the idea of awarding the contract to CVR because it previously received high marks for its work with the housing voucher programs in Chicago and Buffalo.

"CVR is an outstanding organization," Hines said. "They have a proven track record of having taken troubled housing authorities to high performing statuses."

Protestors, however, have called for Milwaukee County to take over the city's Section 8 program. The Milwaukee County Department of Health and Human Services was one of six applicants who sought to win the city contract.

Hines said Wednesday CVR's past work with other large cities outweighed Milwaukee County's experience, which is currently well regarded.

Dena Hunt, HACM's COO of real estate, testified Friday about her past experience overseeing Milwaukee County's Section 8 program. She said she had no qualms about CVR taking over Milwaukee's voucher program.

Critics in the audience said they were impressed by Hunt but added they still wanted the county to control the city's vouchers, as opposed to an out-of-state, for-profit company.

Mayor-council drama in the background

The question of how HACM should outsource its Section 8 vouchers has highlighted a rift between Johnson and Common Council President Jose Perez over how the HACM board's vacancies should be filled.

Johnson announced four nominees in June, including reappointing VandeBerg, to fill out the board. The mayor's office called for the council to confirm those appointees before its August recess.

Jeff Fleming, a spokesman for the mayor's office, said Johnson supported the board moving forward with the Section 8 contract, even with the current vacancies.

"The mayor nominated multiple members for the HACM board that were announced in June. The mayor was hopeful those nominations would have been acted on by the Common Council sooner than October," Fleming said. "The mayor feels the actions recommended by HUD, including this contract for Section 8, should move forward promptly."

In a June 26 letter, nine aldermen, including Perez, called on Johnson to work with the council on finding nominees. Perez said the board would confirm Johnson's nominees on its terms. He said Wednesday the council's Steering and Rules Committee plans to hold hearings for the nominees at its Oct. 21 and Nov. 11 meetings.

On that timeline, the full Common Council would vote to confirm or reject the nominees at its Nov. 26 meeting. Hines said such a wait would be unacceptable because HACM wants to transition to a new Section 8 vendor by January 1, and that process could take as long as 60 days.

A previous corrective action plan between HACM and HUD called for the HACM board to negotiate and award a contract to a new Section 8 vendor by January 31, 2024.

When asked about the quick turnaround between Wednesday's move to the delay the vote and Friday's special meeting, Hines insisted HACM wasn't in a hurry.

"No one is saying there's a rush or urgency to get it done," he said. "We do want to get it done by the start of the calendar year. That was the initial timeframe, even if we were looking at it earlier. We're trying to be as optimistic as possible."

Perez said in a press release Wednesday that if the HACM board approves a contract for CVR with three seats still vacant, the council would "explore all options" to undo that decision.

Common Ground Associate Organizer Kevin Solomon said the group would ultimately hold Johnson responsible if the board approves a contract before its vacancies are filled.

"This is sneaky. This is back-alley politics," Solomon said. "This is a moment where Mayor Johnson ought to feel ashamed. This is not leadership."