New Housing Authority director: Residents are the reason we exist

CANTON − Public and low-income housing is about numbers.

It's percentages and occupancy rates, bar charts and graphs. That's beacuse the goal of agencies such as the Stark Metropolitan Housing Authority is to rent all its public housing units and to spend its allocated federal voucher funds to fill leases with private landlords.

That's all well and good − and important.

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But for Joshua Crites, less than two months into his job as executive director at the Stark Housing Authority, there's more. It begins, he said, with a mindset that behind all those numbers are people in need.

"Vulnerable people ... women, children, grandparents," he said.

Crites acknowledged the agency's metrics are poor.

Only about 92 percent of its roughly 2,300 public housing units are leased. Not due to a lack of demand. They're empty because units aren't being turned around fast enough to make them rent-ready.

"There are people sitting on a waiting list with their noses pressed against the glass saying 'let me in,'" he said.

Same goes for voucher programs, such as Section 8.

All the money isn't being used at the pace it can and should be. The agency has started placing more vouchers on the streets, in the hands of even more families, to begin their search for an apartment or house.

"I'm eating, sleeping and living this," said Crites.

Crites almost landed in Akron

The 41-year-old grew up in Toledo; earned bachelor and master's degrees from the University of Toledo; and spent a year at Cleveland State University along the way. However, most of his professional career was in the Pacific Northwest, in Washington and Oregon.

That's simply where the jobs were.

Now, his serendipitous return to Ohio fills a void at the Stark Housing Authority. It had been without a permanent executive director since April 2022, when Herman Hill resigned after landing the executive director's post at the Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority.

During that director-less period, the five-member board that oversees the Stark agency experienced turnover, as well. In recent months, Linda Bussey has replaced Dan McMasters, who'd resigned. Then, Fonda Williams took over for the retiring Jeff McDaniels.

Board President Tim Shetzer noted several reasons Crites stood out:

• His leadership skills and integrity were evident during the interview process

• He has deep experience in the housing field in the U.S. and abroad

• The Ohio background he brings

And it wasn't the first time Crites had impressed.

He'd previously applied for the director's position in Akron. Ironically, he was one of the two finalists. Although Hill was selected for that job, his departure created the opening in Canton.

Most recently, Crites was deputy executive director at the Housing Authority of Washington County, in Oregon. Prior to that, he worked for housing authorities in Walla Walla, Tacoma and Seattle, all in Washington, along with a year as statewide housing administrator for the Arizona Medicaid Department.

In 2014 and 2015, Crites worked overseas, after he'd landed a fellowship to conduct research on some German and European social housing and homeless programs and policies.

Staff, agency exist for benefit of residents

In Stark County, Crites heads an agency whose stock of public housing includes the 2,300-plus family complex, high rise and scattered site units, along with the voucher program for another 1,800 families.

The bulk of its $35 million annual budget comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development − which monitors agencies and expects results from housing authorities.

Crites said he's aware of the history of problems and challenges that faced the Stark housing authority. They date to a decade ago when HUD ordered Stark to pay back $10.5 million in federal dollars improperly used to develop a commercial venture, the Metropolitan Centre.

Crites' short-term goals include bumping public housing occupancy to 98 percent, a rate HUD considers very good. He also wants to maximize every last dollar of voucher money.

"We're all hands on deck," he said.

Crites said he's authorized overtime to jump start the effort. And staff, he added, is on a mission to fill all employment vacancies, so the agency has the needed reources and manpower.

"I'm pushing hard, really hard," Crites said.

At the same time, he added, he wants to create a culture that makes the Housing Authority a great place to work. A place where employees will grow, develop and stay for the long haul.

"I know a lot of experience has walked out the door (in recent years)," Crites said. "But the staff we have is proud of what they do ... and you can tell they want us to be a premier housing authority. We're going to invest in the staff and this agency, to get there."

Crites created new positions, such as a strategic advisor and chief operating officer, which he's attempting to fill. He'll also bring in a temporary procurement advisor, to work alongside staff for a year, to ensure the agency is following best practices when it hires contractors.

"And I'm going to bring in industry experts to work with staff over the next three years," he added.

Again, he said it's all for the residents.

"Everything we do is for the residents," Crites said. "And they deserve diginity and respect from us .... public housing is a very humble thing. It's the honor of my life."

Reach Tim at 330-580-8333 ortim.botos@cantonrep.com.On Twitter: @tbotosREP

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Big plans and goals for new Stark Metropolitan Housing Authority chief