COLUMBIA, S.C. — The Columbia Housing Authority has announced an interim executive director.
The board met on Saturday afternoon for a brief special-called meeting, appointing Ivory W. Mathews as the interim executive director.
For the past five years, Mathews has served as the executive director of the Greenville Housing Authority. She will be moving to Columbia for the role.
"We are very pleased with our selection of Ivory Mathews," says Ernest Cromartie III, CHA board chairman. "We feel that she will be able to come right in and start right away, having a positive impact on the day to day operations of the Columbia Housing Authority."
Executive director Gilbert Walker will be retiring at the end of June. He made his retirement announcement in February, one month after two men died from carbon monoxide poisoning in their apartments at Allen Benedict Court.
The property is owned and managed by the CHA. Multiple gas leaks on the property forced the evacuation of 411 residents. All have since found housing, either with the authority, or through housing vouchers.
"The residents come first," says Cromartie. "Our commitment, our customer base are the residents. So, residents first, residents first, residents first."
Moving forward, the board says they want more transparency and accountability for their residents.