Housing authority moves forward in replacing Harkless
BROWNSVILLE — The Fayette County Housing Authority anticipates taking action in January to replace retiring Executive Director Thomas Harkless.
Board members learned Thursday that 14 applicants, including one from New Mexico, had applied for the position.
Harkless, who has held the top post for 14 years, will retire at the end of January, prompting the board to empanel a search committee to receive and review resumés, rank each according to the qualifications and make recommendations to the board which candidates should be interviewed.
Harkless, along with board Chairman Harry Fike, board Secretary Harry “Bo” Joseph and executive administrative secretary Trudy Dinardo, comprised the committee.
“We have some very good candidates,” said Harkless.
Following a lengthy executive session, the board agreed with the committee to interview the top two ranked candidates before the end of the year to determine their respective eligibility for the position and, if warranted, take official hiring action at its Jan. 9 meeting.
“If a decision cannot be made after interviewing (the top candidates), we will then interview the next four who had the same ranking scores,” said Fike.
The board additionally reached a one-year agreement with Harkless to serve as a consultant after his retirement becomes official. No salary was discussed for the consulting work.
Turning to other matters, the board discussed the leasing of a five-acre tract of wooded property in Masontown to Summa Development LLC of Pittsburgh for the construction of workforce housing.
The property is owned by the housing authority and is located near Fort Mason Village and along Masontown Park Road. The authority also owns the Fort Mason Village apartment complex.
Earlier this year, the board entered into a multi-faceted deal with the firm that included the option to purchase the undeveloped property and the authorization to construct 37 townhouses on the undeveloped parcel, provided that funding was secured and the company was able to obtain variances for the work.
According to the discussion, the company has agreed to purchase the property outright as state funding was not made available to secure the site. The property has an assessed value of $50,000.
John Verbanac, Summa chief executive officer, told the board in January that a recent study determined that, with the anticipated increase in Marcellus shale production, affordable, rental housing will be needed for the influx of workers.
Verbanac said that the two-story townhouses will be about 1,200 square feet with two or three bedrooms and single story, handicapped-accessible apartments about 750 square feet in size.
Each residence will have a value of about $150,000 with the entire complex and property valued at $6.5 million when completed, he added.
The agreement calls for the housing authority to market, manage and maintain the property. Also, the authority will have the option to purchase the complex after a 15-year period.
Harkless said that the occupants will be employed, with incomes totaling between $25,000 and $45,000.
It is anticipated the monthly rental fees will be about $800.
In other action, the board learned of the completion of renovations to Mulligan Manor, where the meeting was held Thursday.
The $600,000 improvement project at the senior housing site allowed for the replacement of windows and siding and upgrades to the heating, ventilation and cooling systems, along with roof repairs, said Andre Walters, housing authority director of funding and asset planning.
The housing authority partnered with the county redevelopment authority to complete the project, with the redevelopment authority contributing $364,500 to defray the overall cost.
“It was a good project,” said Walters.
Turning to other matters, the board also conducted the following business:
n Learned that the authority has been selected to have a Quality Control for Rental Assistance Subsidy Determinations Study of the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program. Harkless said the study will include a review of tenant files and visits with tenants to determine any errors tied to eligibility and rental fee procedures.
n Advised that plans and specifications for the Belle Vernon Apartments window, heating, cooling and ventilation replacement project are being prepared by Sleighter Engineering Inc. of Uniontown, the authority’s engineering firm. The first phase of the project is to be awarded in January.