Embattled Hickory housing official may leave with undisclosed severance

Hickory public housing’s outgoing top executive could receive severance pay despite presiding over an agency destroyed by allegations of misspending, sexual harassment and failed oversight.

The city-appointed Hickory Public Housing Authority Board of Commissioners has agreed to compensate Executive Director Alanda Richardson, but refuses to say how much she would collect.

Generous exit pay packages for corporate executives and government leaders are not unusual.

But Richardson’s severance has drawn extra attention because she has been accused of misusing public money by purchasing employees and commissioners iPads, pocketbooks, new office furniture, cell phones and other gifts. Former workers also accuse Richardson of neglecting tenants’ allegations that an agency worker offered to pay their rent in exchange for sexual favors.

In response to the allegations, Hickory City Council members have decided to transfer the organization’s operations to the Western Piedmont Council of Governments, which provides assistance to public agencies. Richardson, who has denied any wrongdoing, will not be retained.

The circumstances have raised questions about whether Richardson should receive a severance package.

Housing Authority commissioner Edward Fuller said his board has reached an agreement with Richardson. He would not divulge any details, but did say that Richardson deserved more compensation than the deal stipulates.

Fuller said she would get less than $250,000, which has been widely rumored.

“She has no peer when it comes to administering a (housing) program,” Fuller said. “The girl knows her job.”

Housing Authority commissioners agreed to the severance with Richardson during a hastily arranged 7 a.m. meeting two days before Christmas, prompting calls for more transparency.

Former commissioner Larry Pope, a frequent board critic, said officials met during the early-morning hours to keep the deal from public view.

“They thought they could do whatever they wanted and there would be no repercussions,” Pope said.

Board Chairman Sidney Myles and attorney Dean Amos have denied Pope’s accusations. They have refused to provide information about Richardson’s severance, saying it is a personnel issue.

They did not return phone calls seeking comment.

Under North Carolina law, salary information for government employees is considered public.

“If she has agreed to it, it should be a public record,” Hickory Mayor Rudy Wright said.

Any deal would need final approval from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development, which seized control of the agency’s finances last year after accusations of inappropriate spending and sexual harassment emerged.

Michael Williams, director of public housing for HUD’s Greensboro office, did not return phone calls seeking comment.

HUD sanctioned the agency in 2012 for awarding contracts to officials’ family members, including Richardson’s estranged husband.

In October 2015, a federal review found unexplained bank accounts, financial files in disarray and no evidence that commissioners monitored the agency’s finances. HUD also harshly criticized commissioners for failing to properly oversee Richardson.

The Housing Authority has challenged many of the findings, saying that the office has performed at a high level. Myles last week sent a letter to Williams, criticizing the federal agency’s alleged support for dissolving Hickory’s public housing office.

And Richardson still enjoys strong support among commissioners. Fuller said claims of misspending and other allegations were fabricated by disgruntled employees.

“To be frank, she could have gotten more” money in her severance agreement, Fuller said. “It’s because of the job she’s done.”

This story was originally published January 8, 2016 at 6:03 PM with the headline "Embattled Hickory housing official may leave with undisclosed severance."