Burns files Right-to-Know request on Prospect evacuation
Suspects there is more to the public housing story than JHA is revealing
Rep. Frank Burns April 5, 2023 | 3:48 PM
EBENSBURG, April 5 – Concerned over the Johnstown Housing Authority’s reticence in explaining why tenants were given 30 days to vacate its Prospect public housing community, state Rep. Frank Burns has filed a targeted Right-to-Know request seeking more comprehensive answers.
Burns, D-Cambria, said that by failing to make public the inspection reports that reportedly triggered the forced exodus, along with other pertinent documentation, the JHA is being elusive in providing the full picture to tenants and taxpayers.
“The JHA continues dancing around this issue, instead of providing a full, substantive accounting of what triggered an action unprecedented in its history,” Burns said. “If a single ceiling collapse in one of Prospect’s 110 housing units caused this to happen, as they are claiming, it must be one hell of a structural issue. I aim to find out.”
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“If a single ceiling collapse in one of Prospect’s 110 housing units caused this to happen, as they are claiming, it must be one hell of a structural issue. I aim to find
out.” – Rep Burns
Burns said as it is likely that the JHA has been in contact with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – which provides federal funding for its operation – he believes there probably has been significant high-level communication with HUD over the Prospect situation.
Burns also said that given the JHA’s continued referral to the ceiling collapse as a culprit, he believes it is possible that the housing authority’s insurance carrier may have flagged a liability issue.
To uncover those possible stones and reveal what may be hiding beneath them, Burns’ Right-to-Know request to Mike Alberts, JHA executive director, asks for copies of:
- Any and all documents – including, but not limited to, inspection reports – as mentions or concerns the JHA’s 110-unit Prospect housing community, from Jan. 1, 2023 to the date of receipt of this request.
- Any and all documents, communications (including but not limited to emails) and directives between the JHA and its insurance carrier from Jan. 1, 2023 to the date of receipt of this request, as mentions or concerns the Prospect property.
- Any and all documents, communications (including but not limited to emails) and directives between the JHA and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development from Jan.1, 2023 to the date of receipt of this request, as mentions or concerns the Prospect property.
“The JHA – not HUD – is ultimately responsible for maintaining all of its properties, and providing tenants with safe and sanitary housing,” Burns said. “HUD provides the funding and oversight, but the JHA runs the day-to-day operation. We should all be curious to see what HUD has said about what was uncovered at Prospect.”
Burns said only when the true scope of the problem is revealed to the public can taxpayers and tenants judge whether the sudden emptying out of Prospect was justified.
“’Nothing should be swept under the carpet – and if it has been, we need to lift that carpet up,” Burns said. “Even if there is some sort of plan afoot to demolish Prospect and build new public housing on that site, the public needs to know that, too.”