Some PHA tenants upset with treatment by management

When the federal government releases the Philadelphia Housing Authority to local control, some residents say they want to be heard.

They’re pushing for representation when the authority creates a new board of commissioners.

 

Asia Coney heads the PHA resident advisory board. She says PHA, now being overseen by the federal government, is violating U.S. regulations.

“Specifically, the lack the of recognizing the citywide organization; the fact that they have not had any elections, so many members of the resident council’s are technically out of compliance; the fact that they have not released resident participation funds,” Coney listed.

She says her group is being kept in the dark on how the tenant representatives of the new board of commissioners will be chosen.

“There are seven appointments that have to be put on the board.  Our concern is out of the seven there are two, two appointments for resident commissioners,” Coney said. “We have had no involvement in the process, and we have no understanding as to how the individuals are being selected.”

Interim PHA chief Kelvin Jeremiah says Coney’s isn’t the only tenant group at the authority.

“The new PHA is not business as usual and I think some folks are having a hard time with that. We are completely adhering to all the federal regulations that govern our engagement with residents.”

There’s no date set for returning PHA to local control.