In recent years, Charlottesville’s Redevelopment and Housing Authority (CRHA)—charged with the oversight and maintenance of Section 8 and public housing—has been notoriously inept. Consequently, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has classified the City for the last three years with troubled housing status.
To combat the embarrassing boondoggle, the City hired a new director for the CHRA, and on Monday night, July 17, he was ready to give a prognosis of his first year’s work to City Council. First, Councilor and CRHA Chair Kendra Hamilton had a few words. “We are relieved this is in the capable hands of Noah Schwartz, who is leading us out of the valley of the shadow of death,” she said. “We are very grateful for him.”
“No pressure,” Schwartz replied to scattered laughs. He then ran through an exhausting litany of stats (with a $5.6 million budget, the CRHA manages 376 units of public housing at 11 sites in the city, and also administers 300 Housing Choice Voucher rental units to approximately 2,000 individuals), accomplishments (“What I’m most proud of is our customer service,” Schwartz said) and challenges (HUD doesn’t finance the agency enough to meet public housing needs so it is $100,000 short of revenue every year). As he talked, slides of happy public housing residents flashed on a screen behind him.
“We have a lot more to do that we haven’t done,” concluded Schwartz, before ceding the floor to the council. New councilor Julian Taliaferro offered the first of many words of praise. “I’d like to commend you for the emphasis you’ve put on customer service,” he said. “People need to be treated with the utmost respect.”
“We understand where they’re coming from,” Schwartz explained.
“The first thing we have to do is get off the troubled status so we can get on firm footing,” Hamilton suggested.
“I just love how you say things,” Schwartz gushed, drawing guffaws.
New Councilor Dave Norris also congratulated Schwartz for his customer service before offering a broad compliment. “I commend you and your staff for righting the ship.”
Mayor David E. Brown recounted a brief anecdote of how he once ran a soccer program for low-income kids before summing up the council’s overall affection for the new director. “You really have our support.”
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