City Services Committee gives positive recommendation for Patricia Healy to fill Northampton Housing Authority vacancy

The City Services Committee on Feb. 18 voted 3–1 to give a positive recommendation to the City Council for the appointment of Patricia Healy to a vacancy on the Northampton Housing Authority.

Councillor LaBarge reported on a conversation she had with Healy and presented Healy’s background to the committee. LaBarge said Healy told her, “I worked for 3 years as a nurse case manager at the Cooley Dickinson Hospital,” and that Healy has collaborated with hospital social work staff on patient discharge plans and affordable housing availability. LaBarge also reported that Healy said she had read Department of Housing and Community Development regulations and Massachusetts General Laws governing local housing authorities.

The recommendation matters because it would fill one of several current vacancies on the local housing authority and add a member the committee described as experienced in health care, case management and tenant relations. LaBarge said Healy has lived in Florence since 1990, has three adult daughters who graduated from Northampton Public Schools, and has decades of nursing experience. LaBarge also reported Healy’s stated interests in addressing resident security concerns and building tenant-management relationships.

Councillor Stan Moulton, who presided over the meeting, and other members praised Healy’s prior public service. Moulton recalled working with Healy on the 2019 Charter Review Commission and said, “I found her to be extremely, well prepared” and “a very pleasant and productive member of the Charter Review Commission.” Councillor Dobbs seconded LaBarge’s motion to recommend Healy.

Councillor Rothenberg asked whether Healy had ever lived in public housing; LaBarge said she did not know and could not answer that question. The committee did not resolve that question before voting.

The roll call on the committee’s positive recommendation recorded three yes votes (Councillor LaBarge, Councillor Dobbs, Councillor Moulton) and one no vote (Councillor Rothenberg). The item will be placed on the City Council agenda for Thursday for final action.

No formal motion text beyond the recommendation was recorded at the committee meeting.

Background and affiliations cited at the meeting included Healy’s reported work as a registered nurse and case manager, her service on the Northampton Charter Review Commission, service on the Northampton Council on Aging, involvement with the Massachusetts Nurses Association and with MassCare (a Massachusetts single-payer advocacy group). The committee noted multiple vacancies on the housing authority and said the seat being recommended had been vacated by a member who no longer lives in Northampton.