Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Flint Housing Commission outlines repairs, vouchers and development plans as residents press for action on fires and evictions
Summary
Housing commission leaders told council they operate about 602 public-housing units and 1,444 voucher units, reported progress on audits and HUD recovery issues, and described development and food‑pantry programs; public commenters urged faster inspections, better relocation support after building failures, and stronger enforcement of landlords.
The Flint Housing Commission presented staffing, inventory and redevelopment plans on April 13 and answered council questions as residents urged faster action on condemnations, evictions and fatal fires.
CEO David Northern and staff said the authority manages roughly 602 hard public-housing units and 1,444 housing‑choice vouchers, reported a successful audit submission and removal of the low‑rent public‑housing program from HUD's "troubled" status, and outlined capital projects (including a recent $1.9 million award), boiler and elevator repairs, and a five‑year PHA plan. Staff said they are demolishing scattered-site properties and pursuing federal community project funding requests (about $54 million sought) for multiple redevelopment projects.
During public comment multiple residents and the Flint Housing Union described critical failures: tenants living in condemned buildings, late responses to heating or water problems, a ceiling collapse at 1001 Saginaw, and several fires that killed unhoused people. Commenters said tenants sometimes paid rent even as housing conditions made units uninhabitable and asked how the city is ensuring relocation assistance and enforcement of landlord responsibilities.
Council members pressed staff for numbers and next steps: the housing commission reported about 960 people on the public-housing wait list and roughly 600 on the voucher wait list, both of which are currently closed. Staff said they could provide historical data on the homeownership program and promised follow-up on the request to redesignate some properties as senior housing (with tenant-protection vouchers and relocation support if the board approves).
What comes next: the commission will provide follow-up documents to council (wait-list counts, any homeownership outcomes, and timelines for major capital repairs); council asked the building and permit department to brief Government Operations on inspection enforcement for recent fire-related properties.
