Housing Authority Wins Award

SALISBURY -- The Wicomico County Housing Authority (WCHA) enjoyed a busy week last week with the appointment of a new board member and the announcement of a significant national award.

Wicomico County Executive Richard M. Pollitt, Jr. last week announced the appointment of Mark S. Thompson to the WCHA. Thompson has served in a wide range of community volunteer positions, most recently as chair of the Wicomico County Board of Education.

Pollitt announced the appointment in conjunction with the announcement of a significant national award for the WCHA last month. WCHA Executive Director Narcinda Church submitted to the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment officials a Wicomico County program entitled, “From the Brink of Condemnation to Rejuvenation,” which was honored with an Award of Merit by the national association on July 28.

The program describes the rehabilitation of 90 of the WCHA’s 277 housing units starting in 2008. The program reports many of the rehabbed units in the county were boarded up and in a general state of disrepair, but are now back on the rental roles. The capital cost of the rehab program came from HUD capital funding and federal stimulus funding valued at a combined $1.57 million.

“It wasn’t too long ago that the WCHA bore the burden of being classified as a ‘Troubled Housing Authority,’” said Church. “We left that category in 2009 and won a national award in 2011. And we’re not done yet. We have 30 more units scheduled for rehabilitation in the near future.”