Capital improvements for asbestos removal, flooding abatement and more set for city’s public housing

The Waltham Housing Authority this year plans to test for and remove asbestos at some of its properties; replace some windows with more energy-efficient thermal panels; replace doors, electrical panels and breakers; update its technology; and work to prevent flooding in below-grade apartments.

Those plans got the go-ahead after the WHA’s Board of Directors this week approved the organization’s major expenditures slated for the next five years.

Assistant Director Mark Johnson explained that the organization passes three plans every year: a policy plan, an update to a rolling list of major projects it will tackle over the next five years, and a more specific breakdown of its projects for the upcoming year. Most projects that cost more than $10,000 — including, for example, property purchases, renovations and equipment upgrades — are listed as capital projects in the organization’s budget and must be approved by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development before the WHA can begin them.

The WHA plans to continue upgrading windows, electronics and electrical systems in the next few years. It also plans to replace drainage and waste pipes, keycode systems, hot water storage tanks and fire alarms. By 2030 it plans to repave some of its parking lots, install waterproof membranes on some foundation walls to prevent flooding, replace the pneumatic exhaust fire system in building stairwells, and make structural repairs to some apartments.

The five-year plan also includes payments to cover smaller expenses in its organizational and administrative budgets. 

Additionally, the WHA plans to implement more surveillance at its properties, which Johnson said can help the organization lower insurance costs.

The organization recently held a 45-day comment period for residents to comment on the plans but received none. 

Mayor Jeannette A. McCarthy now needs to sign off on the plans before the WHA can send them to HUD for approval.

Furthermore, the WHA wrote in its plans that it hopes to “correct the deficiencies found in selecting applicants from the wait list” in the next year. It wrote that it recently hired new employees to fill staffing gaps, and hopes to provide them with many training opportunities, since the organization is leasing “at a more frequent pace than in the past.”

 

Additionally, the WHA

• Accepted $2,679,227.54 in the form of a state contract amendment. This funding, over a quarter of which was appropriated from the organization’s budget for 2029, will mostly be used to cover accessibility upgrades at Beaver Brook apartments.
• Approved a change of $4,200 in a work order for asbestos detection and abatement in flooring at properties at Pond Street because the original work order didn’t include two buildings.
• Heard a vacancy report from Maintenance Director Sharif Omer. Omer said the WHA had filled all units that became vacant in 2025 and the oldest current vacancies were from February. He added that the organization had taken a property at Grove Street offline for construction.
• Introduced Bianca Levarity, who is running a self-sufficiency program with the Waltham and Arlington housing authorities to help some housing authority residents build savings and work toward long-term financial and career goals. The two organizations have received a grant to run the program together, with Levarity serving as its coach.
• Received an update that the WHA still hasn’t heard back from the state Executive Office of Housing and Liveable Communities about scheduling a meeting to discuss renewing the authority’s lease for two houses on Marguerite Avenue.
• Updated the board on the WHA’s funding, noting a profit of $149,261 for the year so far. Director John Gollinger said the board’s profit margin fluctuates through the year as the organization takes on large costs and receives state and federal grants. He characterized the WHA as being “right about even as it stands right now.” He said the organization anticipates hearing from the EOHLC soon about the latter’s annual budget.