Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Apcha Appointment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Two applicants interview for one Aspen APCHA board seat, stressing engagement and maintenance
Summary
The Aspen City Council heard interviews from Scott Wooley and Dr. Joseph Mason for a single opening on the APCHA board. Wooley emphasized local engagement and energy-efficiency fixes; Mason, a PhD economist, stressed operations, reserve studies and maintenance strategies.
The Aspen City Council interviewed two candidates for a single open seat on the Aspen/Pitkin County Housing Authority (APCHA) board at its Nov. 11 work session.
Mayor opened the item and named the applicants as Scott Wooley and Joseph Mason. Wooley told the council he is an Aspen native and a product of the APCHA program; he said improving public engagement and addressing the split-incentive that depresses maintenance in rental stock are his priorities. "A more robust public engagement program to gain more trust and reciprocal benefit from the community would benefit both the program and the community," Wooley said, adding energy efficiency work from his background could help maintain housing stock.
Dr. Joseph Mason, who identified himself as a PhD economist with experience at the U.S. Treasury, Federal Reserve and FDIC, said he was attracted to the operational side of the program and the opportunity to move policy into practice. Mason said APCHA is "a very valuable program to the valley" and suggested concrete ideas—such as maintaining a roster of contractors or considering reserve funding approaches—to reduce deferred maintenance and avoid sudden assessments for homeowners.
Council members asked both candidates about technical issues including differences between APCHA'9s rental and ownership programs and the widespread HOA reserve study gaps across the many condominium associations with APCHA units. Candidates described familiarity with the problems and offered ideas: Wooley cited a university program connecting renters to energy upgrades; Mason described the shared-appreciation-like structure of APCHA and proposed exploring contractor arrangements and reserve planning.
The council thanked both applicants for their interest and said it would notify candidates of the outcome. No appointment was announced during the work session.
