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Cape
Cod Times - Special Needs Homes Need Fix A
state auditor's report says that subsidized housing for people with
special needs is badly in need of repair, including housing units in
five Cape towns. But
local housing authority officials say they aren't getting enough money
to make all the capital improvements that are necessary — and the
state's fiscal crisis means taxpayer money is unlikely to come rolling
in soon. The
auditor's office looked at 30 housing authorities across the state,
including ones in Barnstable, Bourne, Dennis, Orleans and Sandwich. "The
Barnstable Housing Authority appeared to have the most serious problems
of the ones we looked at on the Cape," said Glenn Briere, spokesman
for the office of state Auditor Joe DeNucci. The
auditor's office looked at five locations in Barnstable housing clients
of the state Department of Mental Health and the Department of
Developmental Services. "Most
of these houses need some repair," Briere said. Problems included
holes in the roof, too steeply canted stairs, and birds in the ceiling. "The
problem is, there is no money to do capital repairs," Barnstable
Housing Authority Executive Director Sandra Perry said. Rents
have been kept low to reflect cuts in social service agency funding, she
said. "It's
been a struggle, it really has." Some
issues addressed
The
housing authority already has addressed a number of issues in the audit
by cleaning gutters, removing birds from rafters and replacing bathroom
flooring, Perry said. But
much remains to be done, she said. Perry said the houses used in the
program date mainly from the 1980s and need new carpeting and appliances
and septic system upgrades. Years
of underfunding of capital budgets have resulted in the deterioration of
state-subsidized public housing units for people with special needs,
Briere said. Gov.
Deval Patrick's administration increased funding for housing authorities
after a 2006 report by DeNucci's office found many public housing units
to be in serious disrepair, Briere said. But
the current fiscal crisis has curtailed the increases, he said, and
housing authorities do not get enough money from rents or $2,000 annual
maintenance fees to cover both operating and capital needs. The
housing authorities included in the audit, which ran from July 1, 2007,
to June 30, 2008, were those the state Department of Housing and
Community Development listed as most in need of capital improvements,
Briere said. Over
the past three years the Patrick administration doubled spending for
capital improvements in public housing, which previously had been about
$50 million a year, said Philip Hailer of the DHCD. Backlog
of projects
The
lack of funding in prior years led to a huge backlog of repair projects,
Hailer said. He said the current financial crisis means that the capital
budget in fiscal year 2010 was less than in 2009. "We
are making progress in catching up to matters neglected years ago, but
we still have a way to go because funding is not unlimited," Hailer
said. He
said housing authorities can also apply to DHCD for money for emergency
capital repairs. The
Bourne Housing Authority has been told it will get $30,000 in the new
fiscal year beginning in April for capital improvements in 66 units,
including 16 for people with special needs, said Barbara Thurston,
executive director of the Bourne Housing Authority. 'We're
in dire straits'
But
the funds will barely make a dent in the repairs needed on buildings
built in the 1980s and 1950s, Thurston said. "We're in dire
straits." In
many cases, there is also a problem identifying which agency is
responsible for overseeing capital improvements, Briere said. He
said oftentimes private, nonprofit human services providers representing
DMH and DDS clients make rent payments to housing authorities, so there
can be up to three parties involved in the arrangements. The
five locations in Barnstable experiencing problems are the Dorothy
Bearse House; the Darby Flynn House; the Arthur Scott House; and houses
on Race Lane and Pleasant Street. Together they house 52 units for
individuals with special needs under the state's Chapter 689 housing
program. The Barnstable Housing Authority is responsible for more than
1,000 units in total. "We've
been told the state expects to run these programs on rents alone,"
Perry said, but rents are too low to support capital repairs. She
said rents have just gone up from about $185 a month to $216 a month. "I
feel the units are safe," Perry said. But "they are in need of capital repairs and we have to find some way to do it," Perry added. |
| Mailing Address:oseph DeNucci
P.O. Box 600252 Newton MA 02460 Office Location: 259 Walnut St Newton, MA 02460 Phone: 617.630.0600 Fax: 617.630.0625 E-Mail: HDQ@JoeDeNucci.com |
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