News
April 6
For the past year, Lisa Attanazio, a resident of LaPrise Village, a Medford public housing development, has fought to get a fence around her front yard for fear that her five-year-old son, Ajay, will dart out the front door and be hit by a car - again.
"I don't sleep. I get up in the middle of the night because of it, because I know the sun is coming," Attanazio said.
Ajay, who suffers from Autism and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) was hit by a car after he ran out the door and onto Light Guard Drive shortly after housing officials tried to reach a compromise with Attanazio by building a fence around her backyard.
Frustrations with housing officials is common in LaPrise Village, where residents have said that their complaints are ignored by authorities who do not treat them with dignity.
But Attanazio's case is unique, largely because of her determination to get what she wants. It took five months of fighting before officials built the backyard fence. "This is what I ended up getting," Attanazio said, gesturing to the 14 by 14 foot enclosure that she refers to as the "pen."
Attanazio said that she agreed to the fence behind her house because she was afraid that it was all she was going to get from the Housing Authority.
But after Ajay's accident, in which there were no serious injuries, Attanazio was only encouraged to fight harder. She solicited the help of Medford Mayor Michael McGlynn, Massachusetts senators, and even the White House. The case is now before the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD).
But despite all her efforts, Attanazio said that decisions are always avoided, and the situation is constantly kept in limbo. "Every time there was always something, it was always another issue," Attanazio said.
While Attanazio's case is unique because of her determination, LaPrise Village residents claim that many of their complaints are similarly ignored by authorities.
But authorities have expressed only confusion in reaction to such sentiments, and said they have worked hard to help with residents' problems.
John Greco, the head of the Medford Housing Authority, was unable to comment on Attanazio's case because it is in litigation, but he said that he works very hard to make sure that every complaint concerning facilities are dealt with, has regular meetings with residents, and that he rarely hears complaints about how he deals with residents in LaPrise Village.
LaPrise Village is the official name of the Medford housing development where these tenants live. However, they say this name with a wry smile -- always adding that it's just a fancy name for "the projects," usually referring to it by its more common name, Light Guard Drive.
The complaints made by Attanazio's neighbors range from ceilings that leak whenever there is heavy rain to a basement which flooded, damaging a resident's belongings. Complaints were met with excuses from the Housing Authority, and the residents eventually gave up in frustration on ever getting repairs.
All residents interviewed spoke on the condition of anonymity. Although Attanazio said that neighbors often complain to her, most were unwilling to speak to the Daily, even anonymously.
"All of a sudden, 'everything's okay.' They're terrified of losing their residency," Attanazio said. Although it is extremely unlikely that residents would be removed because of their views, many are unfamiliar with their rights.
Some residents even feel that the Housing Authority tries to take advantage of their lack of knowledge. "They think they can fool people, they think everybody is dumb," said one resident of Light Guard Drive. Cases like Attanazio's and the difficulties she has had have not increased trust by residents of the authorities.
A large manual is given to every tenant upon moving into the apartments; few of the tenants, however, felt that they truly understand how the Housing Authority processes function. "I never read the book completely... I don't have time," one resident said. "I don't know how they work."
There is not a resident organization in place in LaPrise Village, Greco said. It is up to the residents to put an organization in place if they wish to, and Greco said that he and the Housing Authority constantly try to get one off the ground. "There are not enough residents who are interested," he said.
However the Residents Commission, a group of housing administrators for LaPrise Village, which includes one woman who happens to be a resident of the development, is an example of more extensive representation than most developments see, Greco said. "That development, more than other developments, has a built-in supervision," he said.
Marilyn McNamara, a resident member of the Medford Housing Authority Governing Board, says that residents feel free to complain to her, said that she has never had any problems with Greco or the Housing Authority in general. "[He does] a very good job, he goes out of his way," McNamara said. "If there's anything he can do he'll do it."
Many tenants in the neighborhood are immigrants, making more difficult the task of understanding the housing manual. "For the most part many [tenants] do not [understand their rights and responsibilities], it really is in the hands of the dully elected residence councilors," said Dushaw Hockett, the director of the Public Housing at Center for Community Change.
Attanzio feels that Greco was not helpful in her request for a fence around her yard. Greco originally stated that the fence would obstruct mail delivery and bother the neighbors, according to Attanazio. But after Attanazio's neighbor stated that the fence "would be in the best interest of everyone involved," Greco changed the requirements, Attanazio says.
In her complaint to the MCAD, her attorney stated the extra conditions were imposed "for the sole purpose of thwarting Ms. Attanazio." The Housing Authority demanded that she construct two separate walkways to her house, as well as a new wheelchair accessible entrance, which neither resident requires.
Attorney Jane Alper, who is handling Attanazio's complaint, said that she has dealt with a case almost identical to this one involving a disabled child who needed a fence for his safety, and that she encountered almost no resistance and never had to file a complaint with the MCAD. "I was a little surprised in this case how much opposition Attanazio has encountered," Alper said. "I really don't understand it."
Alper, who works for the Boston-based Disability Law Center (DLC), said the end of the process does not look like it will come anytime soon, especially if the matter is not settled before the MCAD hearing.
This situation calls attention to how many view their relationship with the Housing Authority, with many only wishing to avoid confrontation. "Lisa [Attanazio] is brave enough to hire an attorney," a resident said, admitting that she would never want to cause that kind of trouble.
One resident said for more than ten minutes that she had had no problems with the Housing Authority before mentioning that her basement had remained flooded for most of the winter. But the resident said that she had never considered that it was something to complain about.
In fact, in the past two annual "National Nights Out," where Greco walks around the development with the residents, he said he has only received one complaint. When asked if residents are worried about repercussions of complaining to him, Greco said there are other routes to take. "If residents don't feel comfortable talking to me, they can complain to the federal or state government," Greco said.
