By Peter Finney Jr.
Good Business Matters
Clarion Herald

Final exams can be nerve-wracking, but the 150 women and men who work for Christopher Homes, the affordable housing program of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, are the reason the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) consistently praises the facilities and staff during its rigorous annual inspections.

“We have that reputation with HUD of being well-operated, well-maintained and well-trained,” Deacon Dennis Adams, executive director of Christopher Homes since 2005, said about the program that provides some 2,500 seniors with decent, affordable housing.

As a recent example, three HUD officials visited Rouquette III and IV in Mande­ville for the dual purpose of inspecting the apartments and also providing training for a new HUD inspector. After reviewing the Rouquette facilities and the voluminous paperwork required by the federal government to be kept on each resident – who pays a percentage of total income for rent – Christopher Homes passed with flying colors.

“The comment I got was, ‘You run a very good operation,’” Deacon Adams said. “HUD is not just going to throw out those compliments. I was very pleased to get that recognition from them. That came from someone who had just walked onto our campus, but by virtue of having worked with our staff on the phone or through emails, they were able to recognize the commitment and the expertise we have at Christopher Homes.”

Deacon Adams attributes the high marks to a dedicated, knowledgeable staff that is regularly trained in HUD regulations, federal fair housing standards and resident care. All of the residents live independently in apartments, Deacon Adams said, but the staff exceeds expectations in taking care of special needs a resident may have.

“As I often say, if we’re living up to our mission statement, which is treating our residents according to our Gospel call, we’re not going to be in violation of fair-housing regulations because we’re going to treat everybody fairly,” he said.

As for ongoing training, Deacon Adams said, an employee might be very skilled in physical plant management but needs to learn more about HUD regulations. That’s why regular workshops are so important, he said.

The good reputation is contagious, and the word about Christopher Homes’ commitment to excellence spreads.

“These HUD inspectors only knew us by virtue of our online connections,” Deacon Adams said. “HUD staffers are reviewing all the requests we make. So, when they look in their files and they see we are a company that consistently scores in the high percentiles in all of our physical plant inspections, that’s important. That’s how they judge our operation.”

Nearly two years after Hurricane Ida, renovations have finally been green-lighted for Rouquette, which lost 25 apartments due to a damaged roof, and for St. Martin’s Manor in New Orleans and Place Dubourg in LaPlace. The work is scheduled to take 10-12 months.

“We’ve got 32 to 35 vacant apartments because of Ida,” Deacon Adams said. When repairs are completed, the total number of residents will be back up to 2,500.

“We have staff that are dedicated, committed and knowledgeable in their skill sets who go above and beyond what’s called for to keep these apartments well-maintained and well-occupied and to care for our residents to help them find the services they need to live joyful and independent lives,” Deacon Adams said.