Mayor Pugh Has Changes Planned For City Housing Authority
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Major changes are ahead for Baltimore's Housing Authority. Embattled Baltimore Housing Authority Commissioner, Paul Graziano, could soon be out of a job.
Mayor Catherine Pugh made it clear on Wednesday that she wants him out.
For nearly a year there have been demands for Paul Graziano to leave his position -- but it may take a new mayor -- and a new housing board -- to force him out.
Brand new Mayor Catherine Pugh, making it clear: Paul Graziano must go.
"Graziano is not my choice to run our housing department," she said.
The 16-year Baltimore Housing Commissioner came under fire last July, when dozens of women filed a federal lawsuit claiming city maintenance men demanded sex before fixing vital, even life-threatening issues in their apartments.
The settlement cost the city $7 million dollars, but Graziano refused to step down, and Mayor Pugh can't directly fire him.
He's hired by the Baltimore City Housing Authority. Pugh says, she'll select the board members carefully.
"I get to appoint the housing authority board. Now, if they don't understand that that is not the person that I want to run my housing department, then they have a problem," said Pugh.
A change can't come soon enough for some residents in Baltimore public housing , who say they have no working heat -- and can't get things fixed.
"Some things I have to fix myself because they ain't come over here and fix anything. Then you've got to keep putting orders in and they still don't fix nothing," said Shirley Nickelson, Gilmor Homes Resident.
"I would like to see this whole projects change. I would like to see them come out here to fix stuff when we put work orders in," said Gilmor Homes Resident, Theresa Matthews.
Those changes are perhaps not far off with Mayor Pugh's promised shakeup.
Mayor Pugh says her team is putting out requests for the best and the brightest to fill empty housing authority board positions.
Mayor Pugh also says she plans to split the housing authority into two separate entities: Housing Authority and Housing and Community Development.
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