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Hickory City Council votes to abolish local housing authority, transfer duties to regional agency
Summary
The council unanimously adopted a resolution to abolish the Hickory Public Housing Authority effective July 1, 2025, and transfer administrative responsibilities to the Western Piedmont Council of Governments, pending final approval from HUD.
The Hickory City Council on Tuesday adopted a resolution to abolish the Hickory Public Housing Authority and transfer the authority’s powers and records to the Western Piedmont Council of Governments, with an effective date of July 1, 2025, subject to approval by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
City Manager Warren Wood told the council the action is authorized under the North Carolina General Statutes and noted that the housing authority currently operates as an independent governmental unit. “The housing authority operates as an independent governmental unit,” Wood said, adding that the authority no longer owns public housing properties and primarily administers HUD-issued Section 8 vouchers.
The resolution directs the transfer of “all funds, files, titles, equipment, and other assets” of the Hickory Public Housing Authority to the Western Piedmont Council of Governments and authorizes the mayor and city manager to execute documents needed to complete the transfer. The council also appointed the COG’s executive director to serve as interim executive director of the housing authority until the transfer is complete.
Why this matters: The city manager told council members the housing authority has not owned the city’s former public housing units for about seven years; those properties are owned and managed by a nonprofit named New Dimensions. The housing authority’s principal remaining role is administering Section 8 voucher assistance, funded primarily by HUD. Transferring administrative responsibility to the regional COG consolidates oversight and operational management under an agency that serves multiple jurisdictions.
Council members moved to adopt the resolution after the city manager’s presentation; the motion carried unanimously. Council members and staff noted the transfer still requires HUD’s final approval before it becomes effective.
What the vote does and doesn’t do: The resolution authorizes the transfer of authority and assets and names an interim director but does not itself change HUD funding or the day-to-day operations of voucher administration until HUD approves the transfer. The city manager emphasized that the housing authority’s staff are not city employees and that the city does not fund the authority’s programs.
Next steps: If HUD approves, the Western Piedmont Council of Governments will receive the authority’s records and responsibilities and the COG executive director will serve as interim director until the transfer is complete. The resolution sets an effective date of July 1, 2025, contingent on federal approval.
Votes at the meeting also cleared routine business items; those results are summarized separately.
