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Willie Hines retiring from HACM
Activists say they are relieved changes are coming to the embattled Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee or HACM. Director Willie Hines announced on Friday, Dec. 6 that he is stepping down as of Jan. 1, 2025.
MILWAUKEE - Activists say they are relieved changes are coming to the embattled Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee or HACM. Director Willie Hines announced on Friday, Dec. 6 that he is stepping down as of Jan. 1, 2025.
FOX6 News put in an open record request for Willie Hines' retirement estimates. He earned a pension working for the city for about 28 years.
Willie Hines
Hines was an alderman from 1996 to 2014. The last ten of those years, he served as the Common Council president. Then in 2015, Hines took a job as associate director of HACM, which offers housing for low-income residents. Since 2022, Hines has led HACM.
Hines will get roughly a $75,000 lump sum payment that comes from a class action lawsuit in the late 1990s. His estimated monthly pension pay will be $11,000. That adds up to roughly $135,000 a year. Hines will be leaving behind what city data shows is his final average salary of $239,000 a year.
Willie Hines
HACM had a number of complaints including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development ordered the agency to turn over its Section 8 voucher program to an outside vendor. Some people living in the HACM properties say they are relieved he is leaving.
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"You see this smile don't you. I was very happy, very happy. Hopefully we can get somebody in there who is going to see us as people and make sure that we are safe and feel safe going into our homes and also taking care of the trash, and the rodent problem," said Kelly Barnes, who lives in a HACM property.
"It’s a good thing. You know, that’s what we’ve been working for. Hopefully, it’ll get a lot better in the apartments. We’re looking for improvement," said Florence Riley, who lives at Westlawn Gardens.
Both of those women are members of Common Ground, a group that has been requesting Hines resign for more than a year.
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The Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee is controlled by a seven-person board. But one person resigned in November. The group will hire the new leader. However, it could be a long process.