This just keeps getting better.

Former CHA staffer Ben Collins tells the UPoR that the Charlotte Housing Authority absolutely knew that he had a previous business relationship with the would-be developers of low-income housing in Ballantyne. The details:

He also said he discussed the relationship with the authority’s attorney and his boss, the vice president of real estate, Kathleen Foster. … On Feb. 11, Collins and his boss, Foster, left the authority under pressure. CHA chief Charles Woodyard said he learned of what he called an ethical violation on Feb. 8 and then conducted an investigation.

Foster was reportedly pressured to leave because of her oversight on the project, according to two sources.

Woodyard has yet to explain why the CHA opted to keep the public in the dark about this internal “investigation” precisely as public meetings were being held on the project, with Republic Development Group principals acting like all was well. Yet they had to know about CHA’s actions on Feb. 11 as well. More details:

In an interview with the Observer last week, Woodyard said Republic wasn’t qualified by the authority to work on the project. Collins said it’s true that Republic wasn’t qualified, but that Republic only had a contract to rezone the land needed to build the apartments. … The contract with Republic called for the authority to pay Republic’s expenses to rezone the property, which were estimated at $25,000. If the rezoning were successful and the authority chose to partner with another developer to build the apartments, they would pay Republic $50,000. If the rezoning were unsuccessful, the authority would pay Republic $20,000.

Let’s cut to the chase. Woodyard clearly thought that bringing the outside group in would help grease the skids for the rezoning, why exactly we do not know. But when Ballantyne rose and up and said no, and pointed to the intertwined business relationship, Woodyard first tried to excise the problem and then just pulled the plug on the entire deal as more trouble than it was worth. But since the Feb. 22 decision to walk away from the project, the local black community and the Dilworth libs have accused CHA and Woodyard of folding when the rich suburbs said “boo!,” prompted Woodyard to construct this narrative which moves nefarious intent on the part of Collins, Foster, and Republic to center stage. Woodyard wants that to be seen as the reason CHA backed out, not that Ballantyne won.

The former employees and partners, however, are fighting back, providing credible evidence that CHA and Woodyard are simply trying to scapegoat them for a very, very poorly conceived and executed plan.

An engaged and responsible mayor and city council would take note of this pointless drama and clean house at their housing authority.