Note: This story was updated Oct. 4 to include comments and clarifications from Randy Sterling, executive director of the Key West Housing Authority.
Key West’s mayor wants to make changes to the long-serving, and admittedly aging, board of the Key West Housing Authority. And she hopes to do it at the October city commission meeting “with no drama.” That may be the sticking point, as few things in Key West occur without drama. Mayor Teri Johnston has already faced opposition to proposed changes to the five-member housing authority board, which oversees millions of dollars in property as well as federal and state and housing funds.
“I will be appointing new members to that board,” Johnston told the Keys Weekly on Sept. 25. “I plan to bring two names forward at the October city commission meeting.”
Johnston has declined to reappoint longtime board member Bob Dean, who has served for more than 40 years and is 92 years old. Dean wrote to the mayor in June, asking to be reappointed for another four-year term.
“Over my past four-year term it has been extremely fulfilling to work with the other members of the board on numerous projects, particularly the Garden View Apartments. I believe that the Key West Housing Authority and the City of Key West have made significant progress in achieving our shared goals and I am committed to continuing this work for the betterment of our community,” Dean wrote.
Johnston replied with a letter thanking Dean for his service and saying, in part, “Your dedication to our community should be a source of pride for you and your family. It was a very special moment to see you, Mr. Frank Toppino and Mr. Roosevelt Sands presiding over the ribbon-cutting for Garden View Apartments.
“As you know, I will be making a number of new appointments to the Key West Housing Authority board in the near future to add different skill sets, new ideas and experience levels as we move forward in arguably the most challenging times in our community to provide quality housing for our residents. For this reason, I will not be renewing your appointment to the board.”
Dean told the Keys Weekly on Sept. 26, “I really don’t have any recourse other than the city commission. I wrote her a letter and applied. She declined. But I’m not going to let this get into a peeing match.”
Roosevelt Sands, who was 91 in 2022, was the second-oldest member of the board. Sands did not seek reappointment last year and the mayor will bring a name forward to replace him.
Chairman Frank Toppino turned 100 earlier this year. Prior to Sands’ retirement in 2022, the average age of the board was 86.
Johnston told the Keys Weekly that Thaddeus Cohen, an architect, former city planning director and candidate for the Key West city manager position, “has put his name forward to replace Roosevelt Sands.”
“And Frank Toppino’s son, Richard, wants to replace his father, when Mr. Frank steps down. I believe that will be an ideal fit, and my appointment to replace Bob Dean is Robert Cintron,” Johnston said.
Cintron is a Key West attorney who has “served on nearly every board in the city, and is a trusted community member,” Johnston said.
‘Time for new skill sets & experience’
“It’s just time to bring some different skill sets and experience to that board, which controls 10% of all housing in the city of Key West,” Johnston said.
She added that the city is also in the process of taking over administration of the Housing & Community Development Office from the housing authority. The office administers city funds and programs designated for housing and community development, according to the city’s website.
“The city will take a more active role in verifying the income of people living in public housing and validating who is in these units,” the mayor said.
Her statement surprised Randy Sterling, executive director of the Key West Housing Authority, who told the Keys Weekly that the city has no such authority. That responsibility lies with the federal government’s Housing & Urban Development agency (HUD).
“HUD has compliance oversight over the Housing Authority,” Sterling said. “Our units are all subject to (official HUD declarations) that ensure those units serve those who the Housing Act of 1937 requires be served.
“The City of Key West has no ownership, interest or authority whatsoever, related to the ownership or operation of the Housing Authority’s public housing units,” Sterling continued. “The housing authority’s policy-making body is its Board of Commissioners, not any city official.
“As a matter of law, validating the income of people living in public housing units is required by federal law. No city action can in any way supersede a federal requirement. The Housing Authority has received certified audits with ‘no findings’ for years. Those certified audits, all of which must comply with federal requirements, also test compliance with federal and state law for all KWHA housing programs.”
He added, “The only connection between the city of Key West and our Housing Authority is the appointment of our Housing Authority Board of Commissioners.”
And those appointments could get prickly among the mayor, her fellow city commissioners and the housing authority leadership.
In February 2021, Johnston tried unsuccessfully to expand the board from five to seven members, again to add new faces and skill sets. But the city commission voted against the change.
The mayor said this week that “there’s some confusion” about whether her two new appointments will require the approval of a majority of the commissioners.
“They’re mayoral appointments, so it should just be a formality for the commission to approve my appointments,” she said. “Hopefully they will pass in October with no drama.”
But Sterling told the Keys Weekly this week that there should be no confusion.
“I do not believe there is any confusion about the process that is statutorily required for appointments. Florida Statute 421.05 outlines the process for all Florida mayors to nominate candidates to act as housing authority commissioners. However, all of those appointments are subject to the confirmation by the City Commission. Our previous mayors and commissioners have used the statutory appointment and consent process for many decades.
“The Housing Authority has important developments planned and underway that will improve and expand the affordable housing supply and redevelop our public housing for the City’s residents. We hope the Housing Authority can keep its focus on these upcoming developments and our existing residents instead of dealing with misinformation, political matters, questions about Florida law and decades-old City practice when filling the commissioner positions.”
Seems some drama may be inevitable at the Oct. 12 city commission meeting.
Stay tuned.
