HAKC Under Receivership
In 1994, the Housing Authority of Kansas City, Missouri (HAKC) faced
daunting and formidable challenges so serious that the agency was
placed in Court Receivership. Prior to Judge Dean Whipple's designation
of Jeffrey Lines as HAKC's Receiver, the agency's housing stock
was largely distressed and obsolete as evidenced by a 43% vacancy
rate, enormous backlogs of uncompleted maintenance work, rampant
criminal activity and hundreds of families living in dangerous,
substandard conditions.
As further evidence of its many management and capital problems,
the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
declared HAKC a "troubled agency," based on its score
of less than 44% under the national Public Housing Management Assessment
Program.
Today, HAKC operations and the majority of its properties have
undergone a dramatic and near complete makeover. HAKC's vacancy
rate now averages about 2%, maintenance requests are addressed promptly
and crime rates within public housing are down by 44%. In 1998,
HUD designated HAKC as a "High Performer" agency.
Most importantly, since 1994, HAKC has focused intensive efforts
to rebuild distressed communities and to expand the supply of quality
affordable housing in Kansas City, Missouri. Soon, HAKC will finish
construction on the 1,000th housing unit either built or rehabbed
since inception of the Receivership effort.
Public housing developments such as Guinotte Manor, Riverview Gardens
and Theron B. Watkins have been transformed into vibrant new mixed-income
communities that serve as the centerpieces of their respective urban
neighborhoods. Similarly, the beautiful townhouses and streetscapes
of Villa del Sol occupy a site that six years ago consisted of bombed
out buildings and empty streets.
In addition to public housing transformation initiatives, new mixed-income
rental and homeownership units are available at Cardinal Ridge in
the Little Blue Valley area of southeast Kansas City. This development
(a replacement for Heritage House), houses seniors and families
in low-density, high quality affordable housing that serves as a
model for the tenets of "new urbanism," with tree-lined
streets, and pathways that encourage pedestrian movement.
Single family and small multi-family housing units are also being
built or acquired in family friendly neighborhoods throughout the
metropolitan Kansas City area. The planning process for this "scattered
site" housing was designed specifically to promote housing
mobility and to avoid the concentrations of poor households that
have characterized traditional public housing developments.
While working hard to construct and acquire permanent affordable
housing units, the HAKC has also helped address the critical housing
affordability issues faced by community residents through implementation
of over 3,000 new Section 8 vouchers. With Section 8 vouchers, participants
lease housing units from private landlords and can choose where
they wish to live.
In all of these construction and redevelopment efforts, HAKC has
focused on developing sustainable, affordable housing that will
help address the housing needs of low and moderate-income Kansas
City residents well into the 21st century. Emphasis has been placed
on achieving quality design which promotes neighborhood pride and
which is appropriate to modern living standards.
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