Galveston public housing construction delayed again

The mixed-income Villas on the Strand provide a fraction of the 569 public housing units lost to Hurricane Ike in 2008. The mixed-income Villas on the Strand provide a fraction of the 569 public housing units lost to Hurricane Ike in 2008. Photo: Galveston Housing Authority Photo: Galveston Housing Authority Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Galveston public housing construction delayed again 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

GALVESTON — The Texas General Land Office this week said 97 units of "scattered-site" public housing on the island should be completed by the end of the year, the latest delay in the Galveston Housing Authority's decade-long fight to rebuild public housing lost to Hurricane Ike.

The 97 are a fraction of Galveston's 569 public housing units destroyed by Ike in 2008. Under a state and federal government mandate, the city is required to rebuild every unit, but construction has been delayed by a combination of public outcry, political inaction and the housing authority's lack of financial capital to manage and maintain the new housing.

Deyna Sims, director of real estate and development for the housing authority said work has begun on 89 of the 97 houses, with 37 completed to date.

The Texas General Land Office originally had forecast the 97 homes would be completed by May.

Maureen Mahoney, director of regulatory oversight for the community development and revitalization branch of the General Land Office, blamed CenterPoint Energy for the delay, saying it had fallen behind on installing electrical lines and poles to some of the homes.

"Right after Hurricane Harvey hit, CenterPoint Energy took all of their resources to get areas up and running and so this was a delay on their part, but we had no control over that," Mahoney said. "Now, they're back working on this project."

Melvin Williams, the new chairman of the housing authority, said he was disappointed the General Land Office had fallen behind schedule.

"I don't understand it. I don't know why things don't happen when they're supposed to happen," Williams said. "One of the problems that I found with the public housing is that if (builders) didn't accomplish it, there were no penalties for not accomplishing it, but since we're not involved in (building) public housing, that's up to the GLO to say, 'Look, you gotta do this in a certain amount of time and if not, then you're penalized.'"

The 97 houses, which cost $22 million, are financed with project-based vouchers from the federal government. Private developers will build and own the 97 homes, which are required to be leased to public housing residents for a minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 30. After that, the developers can sell or rent the units on the private market.

Fewer than half of Galveston's 569 public housing units have been rebuilt since Ike. Two mixed-income developments provide 145 homes for public housing residents, with another 40 one-bedroom units in a separate development. The remaining units — the "scattered-sites" — will be single-family homes and duplexes in neighborhoods across the island.

The GLO has earmarked $66 million for another 287 scattered-site units, but the homes will be built under a different arrangement, with the Galveston Housing Authority owning and maintaining the properties indefinitely.

Previous housing authority chairs have declared that arrangement financially unsustainable, and Williams largely agreed, saying the federal government would have to contribute to maintenance costs.

"The Galveston Housing Authority can't do it," Williams said. "People think, 'Well, the first four or five years there's not much maintenance involved so you should have enough in reserve.' But you can't depend on that. We're in an area with floods and hurricanes, so there's a real need to understand that maintenance is a very, very important issue."

The Texas Tribune reported in April that, of the 544 families displaced from public housing by Ike, only 101 have returned to public housing. Only 59 of those families landed a spot in one of the new mixed-income developments.

Meanwhile, signifcant demand for affordable housing on the island remains. The waiting list for public housing is at 997 people, per the Galveston Housing Authority, down from upward of 3,600 in 2016, but still far more people than available units. The housing authority announced Monday that the public housing waiting list would be opened to applications for two days for the first time in years, beginning Monday, Aug. 6 at 12:00 a.m. through Aug. 7, at 11:59 p.m. The waiting list for Section 8 vouchers also will be opened to applications on Aug. 31.

"I've yet to hear anybody dispute that there are a lot of people (in Galveston) that need affordable housing," said John Henneberger, co-director of the Texas Low Income Housing Information Service, a statewide housing advocacy group. "There is an outstanding legal requirement that they build it and, hopefully, with new leadership at the housing authority, the barriers that have caused these delays, we'll get past this and get this stuff built."

Williams said his first order of business as chairman of the housing authority would be to push the GLO and federal Department of Housing and Urban Development for a defined strategy of managing and building the remaining 287 housing units.

"I think we can find the balance of the sites we need, I think we can get up to the 569 (units) that we need, but you've got to be smart about it," he said.

Williams noted that the city of Galveston has declared the north side of Broadway ripe for development of public housing, but sites have not yet been identified and some form of private capital would be required.

Nick Powell covers Galveston County for the Chronicle. Follow him on Twitter and send him tips at nick.powell@chron.com