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Longtime Bromley-Heath chief retiring

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February 10, 2012|By Travis Andersen

Ive worked with her on dozens of issues, and shes always been . . . very much… (WENDY MAEDA/GLOBE STAFF/FILE/1999 )

Mildred Hailey, executive director of the Bromley-Heath Tenant Management Corp., will retire after more than 40 years at the helm of the organization that manages the Jamaica Plain housing development.

The Boston Housing Authority, which will assume direct control of operations in the nearly 1,000-unit development in April, announced yesterday that Hailey will step down on March 31.

“I think her legacy will be that of a national leader and advocate on behalf of public residents throughout the country,’’ William McGonagle, administrator of the housing authority, said yesterday by phone.

Hailey, 78, did not return a call yesterday seeking comment.

McGonagle said that Hailey and a few other Bromley-Heath residents banded together in the early 1970s to form the nation’s first tenant management group at a public housing development to try to reverse the blight that had overtaken the area.

“My belief is that conditions had gotten so bad at that site that [Hailey and the other founders] just said they’d had enough and that they were going to tackle the problems at the development head-on,’’ McGonagle said.

Problems included unsafe living conditions and about 4,000 broken windows, he said, and the situation has greatly improved during Hailey’s tenure.

“She deserves tremendous credit for that,’’ McGonagle said.

He said the management corporation, with a board of directors composed of 10 residents and five nonresidents with expertise in public housing, will continue to play an advisory role when the housing authority takes over operations.

Angel Lopez, the housing authority’s development manager, and Francina Latimore, the authority’s assistant director for property management, will be assigned to Bromley-Heath in about two weeks to begin working on the transition into the new management structure, a spokeswoman for McGonagle said.

Mayor Thomas M. Menino also had high praise for Hailey yesterday.

“Mildred Hailey has admirably served the residents of not only Bromley-Heath but the public housing residents of Boston and the nation for 40 years,’’ he said in a statement. “She has earned the right to retire after so many years of hard work and advocacy.

“Her deep-seated commitment to public housing residents and the poor will ensure that her proud legacy will be remembered for generations to come,’’ the mayor declared.

Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis said that Hailey has provided invaluable assistance on many initiatives, including community policing efforts at Bromley-Heath.

“I’ve worked with her on dozens of issues, and she’s always been available and very much in command of what’s happening in the housing at Bromley-Heath,’’ Davis said. “She is just a pleasure to work with.