HUD Glass Called Half-Full

By Charles S. Clark

Last week's Washington Post investigative series blasting the Housing and Urban Development Department for failing to follow up on 1,300 stalled or abandoned housing projects around the country prompted a rebuttal.

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In a letter the Post published on May 21 about the series titled "Million-Dollar Wasteland," David M. Cohen, director of HUD's HOME Investment Partnership Program from 1990 to 1994, said reporters Debbie Cenziper and Jonathan Mummolo "painted a distorted picture" by citing troubled projects and highlighting a few dramatic failures that occurred in a troubled housing market.

"In looking at 5,100 active projects, they found that 1,300 (25 percent) were delayed or defunct," Cohen wrote, adding that out of $30 billion spent by HUD, only $650 million, or 2 percent, was spent on unfruitful projects. "Left unstated: Despite the daunting challenge of producing affordable housing during a crippling recession, 75 percent appeared to be moving toward completion."