Salem Housing Authority approves plan to dispose aging public housing, sell 33 homes to Habitat and add veterans preference

The Housing Authority of the City of Salem on July 14 adopted Resolution No. 2316 approving its annual public housing agency (PHA) plan, associated Capital Fund plan and a Moving to Work supplement, and amended that plan to add a veterans preference for scattered-site home dispositions, staff and commissioners said.

Deputy Director Jessica Blakely told the commission the authority is seeking U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development approval to reposition public-housing assets that are costly to maintain. "HUD is putting a lot of pressure on housing authorities to reposition their public housing assets," Blakely said, explaining the agency's decision to move forward on two aging multifamily buildings and a larger set of scattered-site houses.

The agency announced two multifamily properties earmarked for disposition: Shelton Village, at Fifth and Lee Street, which Blakely said is scheduled to go on sale in summer 2025; and Glen Creek Village on Orchard Heights Road, which the authority intends to demolish and replace with higher-density housing after resolving land-use and floodplain issues. Blakely said both buildings are roughly 50 years old and that HUD considers them…