Dear Neighbors: Show Up, & Shut Up

by Vincent Vitkowsky | May 4, 2007 2:02 PM | | Comments (6)

Ronnie%20Brown%202.JPGRonnie Brown left work early to attend a West Rock community meeting to which neighbors were invited — then weren’t allowed to participate.

Brown was among a standing-room-only crowd Thursday night at a four-hour-plus meeting about the future of the housing projects at the edge of town in West Rock’s shadow.

Brown, a Yale dining hall worker, was relocated into the Westville Manor projects, after the housing authority evacuated the 195 homes at Rockview. He said he is eager to get back to Rockview, which he said was like a family, with fewer problems than Westville Manor.

“It’s chaotic. You have kids from three different projects in one spot. You got kids from Quinnipiac Terrace, you got kids from Brookside, kids from Rockview—they’re all living together and they don’t always get along,” Brown said. “I came to find out when I could move back [to Rockview.]”

The meeting was called by the West Rock Implementation Committee (IC) — the group of 15 residents, community members, and public officials who will select a developer to rebuild the now-vacant housing projects at Brookside and Rockview with a hoped-for federal HOPE VI grant.

Jim%20Miller.JPGThe meeting took place inside the newly redecorated West Rock Family Center on Wilmot Road. Two developers recommended by the housing authority showed up to present their bids to the IC and to hear feedback from residents. But within a half hour of the meeting, Housing Authority of New Haven (HANH) Executive Director Jimmy Miller called an executive session; everybody except the IC members was kicked out of the room.

Why? The IC’s members offered the novel argument that since it was “a closed meeting” they were not required under the Freedom of Information Act to give an explanation for going into executive session.

DebbieHilton%20Trese%20Stevenson.JPGTrese Stevenson and Debbie Hilton (pictured), two former Rockview residents, received letters in the mail urging them to come to “a very important meeting.”

The flyer, issued by the Tenants Residents Council read as follows:

If You Have Lived In Brookside or Rockview
You Need To Be At This Meeting.
The Meeting Will Be About You
Returning
To The New Place When It’s Rebuilt

Come Out And Tell Them What You Want
Or They Are Going To Tell You What You Are
Going To Get.

Be A Part Of Your Community Being Rebuilt
The Community Leaders Need Your Support

This Is a Very Important Meeting
So Don’t Be Late

Very Important, Be There! Very Important

Two of the four developers who submitted bids to HANH presented their credentials to the IC and the residents who stuck around to listen. Michael’s Development Corporation said it is the largest owner of affordable housing in the country, and awards more contracts to minority-owned businesses than required by federal HUD law.

Trinity, the other developer, rebuilt Quinnipiac Terrace. It promised to award 30 percent of the total contract spending to minority-owned business, as required by the IC.

Curtis%20Jennings.JPGTwo hours after the meeting was called to order, IC co-chair Curtis Jennings was about to open up the floor to residents and members of the community to ask questions to Michael’s Developement Corporation, when Cassandra Lang said the floor was open only to IC members.

Jerome Perkins of the activist group Man Up said he was also under the impression that there would be a chance for the public to speak. That’s why he came.

“They didn’t let you ask the questions you wanted to ask,” Perkins said. “You were locked out of the process.”

Perkins%20-%20Richard%20Gay.JPGPerkins said he wanted to make sure the Rockview and Brookside redevelopments employ New Haven residents — particularly those who live in the buildings — and that the contracts would go to minority-owned businesses. Perkins said he sees an opportunity for the New Haven residents who are qualified, but not hired for local New Haven construction jobs.

Richard Gay (pictured at Perkins’ left, waiting to go back into the meeting) manages construction for his wife’s contracting firm. He said he would pay local residents $17 an hour as carpenters and $48 an hour as roofers — the required wages for city and HUD contracts, Gay said.

Yul Watley, president of United TRC and IC member, said he also wants to see Brookside redeveloped by a minority-owned business, in accordance with section 3 of the federal HUD guidelines.

Yul%20Watley.JPGWatley (pictured at left posing in front of the fenced off Rockview buildings), Jennings, and Lang asked the developers what sorts of social services they could bring in, and if as developers, they would be willing to hire residents to operate some of the services. Both developers said they have “excellent track records.”

Comments

Posted by: Gary Doyens | May 4, 2007 4:18 PM

Excuse me Jimmy Miller - You are a public body. It was a public meeting. All your business must be conducted in public unless you are discussing legal strategy or employee actions. Given the problems of the housing authority in the last several years, I would suggest you conduct more of your business in public and less in private. It would help increase the accountability (I know that's a dirty word) and reduce the temptation to do things that aren't kosher. Now, there's a thought.

P.S. It's the public's money, Jimmy and the rest of you Housing Authority members. Come on folks, get with the program.

Posted by: Yul A. Watley | May 4, 2007 4:27 PM

From The Desk of Yul A. Watley

I personally apologize to the residents that attended the meeting. I too thought that the residents from Rockview And Brookside would have a chance to speak, but that was not the process. Also, the committee went into executive section because there are still unresolved issues between the housing authority, this community, and this city that have plagued this redevelopment process from the beginning. All we want to do as community leaders is to get the maximum amount of participation for our resident in this redevelopment process as possible. But the powers to be in this city would like nothing more then to make all the decisions concerning the lives of public housing residents themselves.

New Haven, you must realize, this is going to be a multimillion dollar redevelopment, and when you are dealing with that amount of money, the powers that be want to control everything. As in the school construction project here in New Haven. It is a harsh reality that every working day for the last few years, at the end of the work day on the school construction project, 95 % of the workers, be it, contractors, or minority workers, one thing is obviously true. When it became quitting time, at the end of the work day, that 95% did not live in the city of New Haven. This will not happen in West Rock. We as resident leaders have vowed that in this project the residents of our community will be empowered as is our right. Who knows, this may be just one of the ways that the Federal Government is saying to a class of people, THIS IS YOUR 40 ACERS AND YOUR MULE. Think about it. May GOD Bless Us All.

Posted by: Demand a commnet | May 4, 2007 10:02 PM

The Mayor moved to of this "cabnet memebers" over the past three years to very good positions in NHHA. Karen Dubios-Walton was acting mayor when Jimmy was hired. You see Jimmy was not from New Haven, and Johnny liked how high Jimmy jumped, and so did Karen (she looked smart). Now Jimmy is going to learn and will resign soon. Otherwise we should FOI his email now, and make sure the BOA makes sure all new federal laws on inter-department comunications are enforced. I ask for the BOA to do this because Tom Ude will not!!!!!!!!!! He has failed this city, as have Tina Burgett and others...those that rem,ain are the lowest of the low, or left withh no option because their lives and pensions are tied to the city. We don't need layoffs of the hardworking city employees, but we do need some review buy a voted in poll. Can't NHI or one of the many contributers offer a good idea. I can't...

Posted by: visitor | May 4, 2007 11:12 PM

You can't illegally go into closed session. It has to be done for an allowed reason. If not, there are consequences, which the FOI commission can enforce, if someone files a complaint. (It is free to file a FOI complaint).

They may have to release the notes from the closed session, or disclose it, if the FOI commission decides it was illegally done.

The FOI commssion can and has in the past reviewed sessions like this and have in the past forced disclosure if the session was not proper.

Posted by: Ben Ross | May 6, 2007 7:16 PM

I wonder what Paul Bass thinks about this....now it is a closed meeting, thang? hope to hear about in the compost report later this week!!! FOI request/demand seems like a no brainer.

Posted by: KAMB | May 7, 2007 9:22 PM

Hey Yule Watley,
Why does the city have to hire people who live in the city? This kind of thing doesnt happen in other towns or cities across the state? Even state construction jobs, city construction jobs, get bid out to out of state or in state contractors who bid on them. Why should people in the city get preferential treatment to build these housing complexes? Is'nt it enough for you that working tax payers are footing the bill to once again build a housing project for to live in??? Now you want to get paid by the city to build it and then live in it for free?! This is outragious. You're so concrened with whats happening in the old Rockview and Brookside Projects, why dont you put that enegery into buying yourself and family your own house and move out of the projects? How long have you lived in the governments failed welfare assistance program?

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