Willie Hines, Jr. Named Head of Housing Authority

Willie Hines, Jr. has come a long way. So far that he’s back where it all began.

Born in 1964, Hines lived with a large family in the Hillside public housing development just north of Downtown. One of 10 siblings, he would go on to graduate from Marquette University, spend a few years in the private sector, take a role with the Milwaukee Urban League and work as an aide for Congressman Jim Moody. In 1996, at the age of 31, Hines was elected to the Milwaukee Common Council and rose to become council president in 2004.

Hines, 57, was confirmed Thursday as the new head of the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee, the state’s largest affordable housing provider.

“On behalf of the Housing Authority’s Board of Commissioners, we are proud to announce Mr. Hines as our next Secretary-Executive Director. His remarkable talents, collaborative and engaging management style, and extensive experience make him an ideal choice to lead HACM in advancing its mission. We look forward to his leadership as we work towards our collective goal of providing high-quality, affordable housing and opportunities to thrive for the people we serve,” said board chair Mark Wagner in a statement.

Beyond previously living in public housing, Hines has long been connected to HACM. He was chairman of its board from 1998 to 2014. His tenure only ended when he resigned from the board and his council seat to become the agency’s second in command, its associate director.

Since May 2021, he’s served as its acting director after longtime director Antonio (Tony) M. Pérez announced he was taking a temporary leave to attend to an undisclosed medical issue. Pérez resigned in February.

Hines is the first Black leader in the organization’s 78-year history. He’s also the first former resident to lead the organization. HACM, in announcing the change, said it’s only the sixth leadership change in its history. Pérez had served as executive director since 2000.

“I want to thank HACM’s Board of Commissioners for their thoughtful consideration and trust in me. I look forward to working with our board, dedicated team of employees, residents, and partners to continue building innovative housing solutions,” said Hines. “I’m excited about the opportunities that lie ahead for the organization as we continue to serve our community. As a product of public housing, I am living proof that stable, affordable housing can provide the foundation from which to build a better quality of life.”

HACM provides housing to more than 10,000 Milwaukee households either through its own housing or vouchers for private housing. Its constituents include low-income families, seniors, adults with disabilities and veterans.

Its offerings include more than 4,000 subsidized units that it owns and the provision of approximately 6,000 housing assistance vouchers (federal Section Eight rent assistance) that support individuals and families living in private housing.

Hines will likely get to host a special ribbon cutting in the coming years. In phases, HACM has been redeveloping its Westlawn Gardens public housing development, the state’s largest, into a modern housing development supported by low-income housing tax credits. Already designated a “Choice Neighborhood” by the federal government, Governor Tony Evers announced $6 million in funding for the final phase in February. It would be paired with $9 million from the Common Council. Both the state and local grants are coming from federal American Rescue Plan Act funds.

“We are very, very honored by those dollars,” Hines told Urban Milwaukee in February. “It’s going to go a long way.”

The final phase includes 141 affordable units, 50 of which are for youth aging out of foster care, and construction of new roads, lighting and other infrastructure. Market rate housing is also planned, which HACM would subsidize with other funding sources. Additional funds could still be required to compensate for construction cost increases.

The HACM director is not a mayoral appointee, at least not directly. The seven-member HACM board of commissioners, all mayoral appointees, select the agency’s next permanent director. But Hines is one of a handful of former council members that are serving in an advisory role on Acting Mayor Cavalier Johnson‘s campaign for the mayoral post.