Baltimore’s RAD plan is among nation’s largest, HUD secretary says
Donovan says he is impressed by Baltimore’s high level of need and its “innovative” application
March 20, 2014 | BaltimoreBrew
Baltimore, MD (March 20, 2014) – Standing in front of a scrolling slideshow of public housing decrepitude – moldy bathrooms, cracked concrete and rusty heating pipes – U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan applauded Baltimore’s involvement in a new federal program that aims to finance repairs by selling some of the city’s public housing to private owners.
“It is a central piece of the President’s and my preservation strategy for public housing,” Donovan said yesterday during a pr blitz at The Brentwood on 25th Street, one 22 public housing units planned to be converted as part of the first round of the city’s participation in the Rental Assistance Demonstration Program or RAD.
“What it allows Baltimore to do is to convert 4,000 units of public housing to a time-tested platform that we call Section 8 that will provide more reliable funds and most importantly to unlock the potential to bring hundreds of millions of dollars of other resources,” Donovan said, speaking to about 50 state, city and federal housing officials as well as to a few public housing residents.
“Public housing is the only form of affordable housing in our country that cannot access low-income housing tax credits provided by the state and other affordable housing resources. It’s been locked out,” Donovan said.