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April 9, 2024 Meeting Minutes

Tuesday, April 9, 2024 8:00 AM

Tranquil Terrace
845 Swoope Ave.
Winter Park, FL 32789

Commissioners Present: Board Chair; Hal George, Commissioner Dawn Ofodile, Commissioner Bob Klettner, and Commissioner Karen Jacobs.
Commissioners Absent: Vice-Chair Kenneth Goodwin and Commissioner Bob Klettner.
WPHA Staff Present: Tarena Grant, Interim Executive Director, Amaris Hunt, Executive Assistant, Melissa Martinez, Director of Finance, and Sherry Sutphen, Attorney.
NDC Staff Present: James Allen
NDC Staff present via Zoom: Tina Burks, Compliance, Karen Kreutzer, CFO, Rick Elwood, Dennese Hitt, and James Allen.
Virtual Guests: Rick Elwood, NDC, Cindy Wilson, NDC - Regional Manager, Karen Kreutzer, NDC -CFO,
Patti Tilchin, Fee Accountant, and Stephen Blake, FPHASIF.
Guests: Nancy Lewis, Mara Smith and Nancy Freeman.

  1. Call to Order
    Chair George called the meeting to order at 8:14 A.M and announced a quorum.

  2. Public Comment
    Chair George introduced Nancy Freeman and Mara Smith. Nancy Freeman shared that they had the opportunity to meet with residents of The Plymouth on two separate occasions, as a part of their campaign. They shared concerns the residents shared with them as it pertained to The Plymouth (see Exhibit A). They feel that the City of Winter Park can be a resource and look forward to partnering with the agency to help make Plymouth a showpiece in Winter Park. Chair George gave a brief overview of our properties and asked Interim ED Grant to chime in on the updates to some of the concerns they'd shared. Interim ED Grant shared that progress had been made regarding many of the areas that were shared as concerns.

  3. Consent Items

    1. Approval of Minutes - March 20, 2024

      Chair George asked if there were any questions regarding the minutes from March 20, 2024. Seeing none, Commissioner Jacobs motioned to approve the minutes. Commissioner Ofodile provided a second. The motion was approved unanimously.

  4. Actions Items

    1. Approval of Resolutions

      1. RESOLUTION 04092024 - A - Authorizing the Acceptance of a Proposal from The Florida Public Housing Self Insurance Fund (FPHASIF) in the Amount of $339,626.45 for All Insurance Related to Winter Park Housing Authority Properties, Beginning May 1, 2024, to May 1, 2025.
        1. Interim ED Grant explained that this resolution is to approval the insurance proposal for all WPHA properties. She then opened the floor to Mr. Blake with FPHASIF who gave a brief history of the factors that affect the cost of insurance and clarified the breakdown of insurance for both the Casualty insurance and all other insurance related to WPHA properties.

          Commissioner Jacobs motioned to approve the resolution. Commissioner Ofodile provided a second. The motion was approved unanimously with no further discussion.
      2. RESOLUTION 04092024-B - Authorizing the Acceptance of a Proposal from The Florida Public Housing Self Insurance Fund (FPHASIF) in the Amount of $52,852.87 for All Casualty Insurance Related to Winter Park Housing Authority Properties, Beginning May 1, 2024, to May 1, 2025.
          1. There was no additional discussion on this resolution. Commissioner Ofodile moved to approve the resolution. Commissioner Jacobs provided a second. The motion was approved unanimously.

  5. Executive Director - Discussion and/or Direction
    1. Interim Observation
      Interim Executive Director Grant shared a few HUD office updates regarding the status of access for EIV and eLoccs. Chair George confirmed he'd decertified the previous ED in the system. She went on to explain that we are still working on the Tuscany refinance and are awaiting appraisal bids.

      Interim ED Grant also shared that the Executive Director Job posting is live on NAHRO, FAHRO, our website and social media. Commissioner Jacobs shared that there has been good response with qualified individuals applying.

      Lastly, Interim ED Grant shared that since our last board meeting NDC had been served with a notice to cure specifics areas according to their contract. They are still within the 30-day period given for the notice and she will meet with them to review compliance with the notice and resolution.

  6. WPHA Reports
    1. ROSS Report
      1. Mrs. Grant explained that we continued with our reoccurring property events. In addition to those services, we held our quarterly Fresh Bus for Winter Park Oaks, The Meadows, and Tranquil Terrace. We also held a Resource Fair at The Plymouth. K2 Medical returned for Memory Screenings, and we also had Bingo, Canvas Paintings and more for our residents.

        She also held 5 community engagement meetings with some community partners to plan for additional coordinated support, resources for the residents and opportunities for our residents. Our team also attended a Roundtable Talk event with Simply Healthcare to connect with other agencies.

        Lastly, she highlighted Fannie Hillman and Associates and gave thanks for the generous donation of monies raised during the WP Art Festival. She also gave thanks to City of Winter Park Urban Forestry for coming out to prune palm trees at The Plymouth.

  7. NDC Reports
    1. Property Overview
      1. Mr. Allen gave a brief overview of how occupancy has been positively affected based on the concession that is being given as a move in special. He shared that they are in the process of putting together a capital improvement plan for The Plymouth for larger items such as roof replacement, chillers, elevator modernization, etc. For Tuscany, they are working on 10 units to use for temporary housing to address issues within occupied units. There was a brief discussion on the number of delinquent residents and the eviction process in the past and going forward.
    2. Financials
      1. Mr. Allen explained the RealPage conversion on how it's affected the sub journals and general ledgers. He confirmed that his team is still working on correcting this issue to ensure that the general ledgers are correct. Ms. Kreutzer gave some insight on how their team is working through the issue and confirmed her team will work through.

        He spoke briefly on the Tuscany refinance and that they are working on getting an appraisal for the property. Ms. Martinez spoke about the reports that the banks were requiring the agency to submit for the refinance. Mr. Allen confirmed NDC is assisting with the information that has been requested.

  8. Commissioner Reports
    1. Commissioner Jacobs
      Commissioner Jacobs asked if the discussion of the Co-Developer was still being tabled during the agency transition. It was confirmed it is. She also asked for the status on the Executive Director job posting. Interim ED Grant confirmed that the job posting will remain open until April 19th. Attorney Sutphen reiterated that Commissioner Jacobs and Patti Tilchin are simply fact finding and should use a spreadsheet to present the applicants to the board.

    2. Chair George
      Chair George introduced Nancy Lewis, who is pending application approval by The City of Winter Park for the new resident commissioner. He opened the floor for Ms. Lewis to speak. Ms. Lewis gave a brief introduction of herself and shared a bit of her background. Chair George shared the full list presented during public comment and suggested the agency work with The City of Winter Park on resources that may be available to us. He also suggested that the staff work better at communicating with residents.

  9. Adjournment

    With there being no further business to come before the board, Chair George called adjournment at 9:40. a.m.

April 9, 2024 Meeting Minutes - Exhibit A

Summary of issues from the Plymouth Meet-N-Greet
2/19/2024

  • Broken elevator - only one operating elevator & door
  • Yard and tree maintenance is lacking proper attention
  • Bugs are a big problem; some called it an infestation
  • Security service has been removed; some residents complained of not feeling safe to go outside after dark due to crime
  • It was suggested that a shuttle to Park Ave be provided on Saturdays
  • Winter Park police no longer patrol property on a regular basis
  • Traffic on Aloma and Fairbanks is a serious safety concern; drivers running red lights
  • It was suggested that perhaps some tenants could serve on the Housing Authority Board
  • Rules for residents at the Plymouth are not enforced; Management very lax