City housing ranking draws $40,000 bonus
HUD revises ratings of Paducah program, which received praise from many residents.

Brian Peach bpeach@paducahsun.com--270.575.8603

Friday, February 24, 2006

For a fourth straight year, the Housing Authority of Paducah has received a “high performer” rating from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and will get a $40,000 bonus.

However, authority Director Cal Ross says the 2005 recognition carries more weight than previous years’ because HUD raised its standards.

And the recognition wasn’t even initially given. Ross said he had to appeal some low ratings given because some buildings are receiving roof repairs and temporarily don’t have gutters.

“HUD rated us down for that,” Ross said. “Then they went back, we got two additional points for maintenance.”

And the $40,000 that those few points earned the authority will go right into the renovation budget.

Part of the rating came through a resident survey. HUD annually sends the surveys to 10 to 20 percent of residents, Ross said. Based on the feedback, the authority received a 9.2 out of 10 in resident satisfaction, according to the HUD report.

“We’re very pleased that the residents, overall, like us,” Ross said.

A computer program was used to select the residents randomly. Ross said it equates to between 90 and 180 residents, but he’s sure not everyone responded. He conceded that not all residents are always happy, but he cited the unbiased survey in pointing out that a vast majority appear to be pleased with their experience.

Pierce Lackey Court on Marquess Drive received the highest rating — 92 out of 100 points — while Anderson Court Apartments on North 8th Street received the lowest rating, 62 out of 100. Ross attributed the low rating to HUD’s considering a boiler room “common space” not safe enough, even though no one but maintenance crews have access to the area. He also said recently tested fire alarms failed when HUD tested them.

“That was the one score that bothered me the most,” Ross said. “We’ve invested millions in Anderson over the last few years. ... That building is 56 years old.”

The other seven housing locations, other than Anderson and Pierce Lackey, received from 73 to 91 points. Elmwood Court’s Elderly Addition and Blackburn Court were in the 70s; other Elmwood Court buildings, Ella Munal Court, Dolly McNutt Plaza and scattered housing sites were in the 80s; with various “acquisition sites” being rated 91.

Finance management was also highly rated, receiving 28.2 points out of 30.

“We manage our money very, very well,” Ross said.

Printed with permission from the Paducah Sun