To: MPHA, HUD, Mayor Jacob Frey and Minneapolis City Council
I am writing in regards to MPHA’s 2019 MTW Annual Plan that MPHA is planning to send to the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD). This plan is full of flaws, hiding key information, misleading statements, and legal shortcomings. This plan would approve the privatization of all public housing, leading to the dismantling of over 730 homes, 42 high rises, the Glendale Townhomes, and more, as well as the displacement of over 11,000 public housing residents, and 17,000 on a waiting list. These are majority Black, Black Muslims, disabled seniors on fixed income, refugees, immigrants, and families with children. MPHA, led by their Executive Director Greg Russ, wants to start plans to privatize Elliot Twins in Ward 6 without resident and city council approval or notification. This is a violation of both HUD and City policies and ordinances.
As an elected and public official, I am requesting that you reject MPHA’s 2019 MTW Annual Plan as it is written now. Ask MPHA to go back and rewrite this plan. MPHA must restart the clock and write a 2019 MTW Annual Plan that is honest, transparent, and that will not mislead public housing residents, their families, city wide residents of Minneapolis, elected officials and HUD. See this link for an in-depth analysis of it’s misleading approach . MPHA’s hidden and dishonest plans are misleading residents and the public in order to sell public housing & its communities to private developers that will displace public housing residents. MPHA 2019 MTW Annual Plan is failing the City of Minneapolis, and its public housing residents for the following reasons, plans, issues and topics they describe in their plan:
- MPHA’s Strategic Vision & Capital Plan 2018–2020 & 2020-2030: lays out a misleading plan MPHA’s plan to end public housing in Minneapolis as it has existed since 1938. MPHA refused to collect comments during the board meetings, failed to notify residents, and failed to provide a 30 day comment period. None of the residents in these buildings and townhomes were informed about this plan. This plan has been prepared in secrecy violating MPHA’s own public engagement policy, Minnesota’s Open Meeting Law, and City of Minneapolis’ resolution on Glendale, and its “Core Principles of Community Engagement”.
- Section 18 Disposition of Scattered Sites into Private Fourplexes
MPHA plans on privatizing over 730 single family homes through Section 18 Disposition & Demolition. MPHA attempts to hide this from the reader by titling this section “Preserving and Stabilizing MPHA Scattered Sites through ‘Section 18,’” conveniently leaving out that Section 18 authorizes the demolition and disposition of public housing as a result displacing families providing them Section 8 Vouchers that private landlords are no longer taking. MPHA plans to follow Mayor Frey’s lead and turn these public housing homes into privately owned fourplexes. The fourplex plans outlined in City’s 2040 Comprehensive Plan. MPHA continues to use misleading and dishonest language in an attempt to deceive public officials, residents, and the broader public about their activities.
- RAD- Elliot Twins: Leads to displacement of seniors that are not informed. Restart the discussion before application is filed. MPHA misled Elliot Twins residents about RAD and residents rejected RAD. (RAD) Rental Assistance Demonstration Program is a voluntary program that will displace residents, increase rents, and residents can’t come back to their buildings because the buildings will convert to private development with luxury apartments. MPHA began the planning process of RAD on April of 2017, and for 15 months until August of 2018, MPHA hid this plan, misled and excluded Elliot residents from the planning and decision making process regarding the RAD application to HUD. Residents saw that MPHA was not honest during RAD meetings on August 8th and 9th, 2018. During the meetings, MPHA sent mixed messages about residents using Section 8 to move out, or residents moving to other public housing buildings. MPHA knows this will lead to displacement because private landlords don’t take section 8, and the waitlist for public housing is 7 years long. Also, MPHA hid from residents U.S. General Accounting Office report report that stated RAD leads displacement around the nation. Residents were not informed about RAD. MPHA kept it a secret and misled them, and Elliot Twins protested and rejected RAD when they found out MPHA was misleading them.
- MPHA failed to inform, provide access and engage residents
MPHA said in a letter public housing residents must go online to read or comment on the 2019 MTW Plan. Majority of public housing residents don’t have access to computers and may not have emails, and half of the population don’t speak English and a large number are disabled. How are they supposed to access this report. MPHA violated its obligation for Limited English Proficiency and the rights of disabled residents. MPHA failed to provide other ways for residents to access or understand this report, and the danger these plans present to the safety, well-being and housing stability of public housing residents. Resident Advisory Board or Tenant Advisory Board and Minneapolis High Rise Council ( MHRC) does not represent public housing residents in Elliot Twins, Glendale, etc., because residents don’t know what they do or who they are. Elliot Twins complained about MHRC that MPHA ignored. MHRC failed to advocate for residents, and they can’t approve any plans without a public transparency and without the consent of all of the public housing residents.
- Misleading and questionable budget: MPHA uses false narrative about lack of funding to push to privatize public housing. MPHA has money and is able to access public funds as they have in the past, but MPHA does not want to keep public housing public which is why are not lobbying or accessing public funds that are available them. See here for full analysis of MPHA 2019 MTW Plan
- “Approved” MTW Activities includes many activities that are not approved. This is totally dishonest and misleading. Public trust about MPHA’s leadership continues to deteriorate
MPHA’s 2019 MTW Annual Plan must undergo a rewrite to reflect honest and good public housing policy to keep public housing public, and thorough, transparent community engagement process before it is approved. I urge MPHA’s Board of Commissioners, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development ( HUD), Mayor Jacob Frey, Minneapolis City Council, Housing Policy & Development Committee to fulfill their role as protectors of public housing and reject MPHA’s 2019 Moving to Work Plan for its lack of transparency and misleading approaches.