THA suing city council over appointment to its board
TRENTON >> You’re not the law, council.
The Trenton Housing Authority is suing City Council claiming it illegally appointed someone who is not a resident at the public housing to serve on the Board of Commissioners, jeopardizing grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The council appointed Sonya Wilkins to fill the expiring term of Darlene Weldon-Gordon, whose term expired at the end of June. Council appoints five of the seven commissioners on the board of THA, which was created by council in 1938 but is an autonomous body that receives federal funds.
Wilkins was appointed 5-0, and her five-year term was supposed to start July 1, according to a resolution. But the THA board has refused to seat her.
City law director John Morelli wrote to the THA’s attorney Grant Wright on Aug. 13, saying that Wilkins’ appointment falls in line with state lawand the council wouldn’t rescind her appointment.
The board adjourned an Aug. 14 meeting contending that seating Wilkins violates federal regulations requiring at least one of the seven commissioners is a resident of THA housing. Council president Kathy McBride personally visited THA headquarters the same day to push for Wilkins to be seated, according to the lawsuit.
THA has asked Mercer County Assignment Judge Mary Jacobson to settle the issue. The board’s next meeting is Sept. 11 and it won’t move forward with the meeting if council doesn’t correct the “abrogation of the Code of Federal Regulations,” Wright contended in court papers.
“The regulation does not state that a board ‘may’ or ‘should’ contain at least one residentmember,” THA’s attorney wrote. “The regulation frames resident membership to a public housing board in the imperative, stating that each board ‘must’ contain at least one resident member. The federal law on the issue is unequivocal.”
Morelli and McBride did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment on the filing.