LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. — The Lee's Summit Housing Authority has an entirely new board of commissioners.
Every commissioner on the previous board resigned in November. The executive director resigned in October.
The new board members, appointed by the mayor of Lee's Summit, have diverse backgrounds in public service, real estate, non-profit work, budgeting and project management.
Mary Smith is the vice chair and resident commissioner. She lives in Lee Haven, a public housing community. Her term expires in May.
Steven Blake is a site policy expert with the Department of Energy and a federal contractor for Honeywell Federal Manufacturing & Technologies. His term expires in May.
Samantha Salem is a realtor. She's lived in Lee's Summit for 16 years. Her term expires in May 2026.
Yvonne Ventimiglia is an advocate for subsidized, accessible housing. She's lived in Lee's Summit for 40 years. Her term will expire in May 2026.
Bob Johnson, the board chair, is a former Lee's Summit city council member. Johnson was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives and served in the state senate. His term expires in May 2027.
"The mayor called and was going through eight minutes, 10 minutes worth and finally, I said, 'Bill, what do you want from me?' He asked me and I thought this is good. This is good for our community," Johnson said.
The new board met Wednesday evening for their first meeting.
Commissioner Johnson said his focus is for all tenants in their 116 public housing units to feel at home.
He said: "This is designed to be quality housing, regardless of your economic status, regardless if you have handicaps or not. You should have the same needs and expectations of housing."
The board has more immediate priorities, including hiring.
The current interim executive director, Valerie Jackson, leaves on Feb. 14.
Since the board is responsible for hiring the executive director, they must find another interim or contract a hiring firm to hire the new interim. Hiring an interim gives them time to search for a permanent executive director.
Johnson said the agency is also shortstaffed and they need employees to help the housing authority catch up.
The agency may call special meetings, in addition to their monthly public meetings, to take care of priorities before the interim director departs.
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KSHB 41 reporter Alyssa Jackson covers portions of Johnson County, including neighborhoods in Overland Park, Shawnee and Mission. Share your story idea with Alyssa.
