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CHICAGO (WLS) — The candidate selected by Mayor Brandon Johnson to lead the Chicago Housing Authority was reportedly not given serious consideration by the selection committee due to concerns about his qualifications for the role.
ABC7 has reviewed a letter that highlights the committee’s reservations regarding the candidate’s suitability.
Mayor Johnson had expressed his desire for former Alderman Walter Burnett to take on the role of CEO of the Chicago Housing Authority. However, Burnett’s name was introduced into the selection process at a late stage, and the committee ultimately decided they could not endorse him for the position.
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During his 30-year tenure on the City Council, Burnett was recognized as a dedicated advocate for the 27th Ward and maintained a close alliance with Mayor Johnson.
He stepped down from his council position this past summer, aiming to be appointed by the mayor as the head of the Chicago Housing Authority.
In a letter dated October 1, the Chairman of the CHA responding to an inquiry from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development about the CEO selection process wrote: “As a courtesy, the Selection Committee interviewed Mr. Burnett on June 8.”
“They just wanted to say they talked to him so that they could placate the mayor and then hire somebody who’s really qualified for the job,” said David Greising, President of the Better Government Association.
A month earlier, the committee had already reviewed 107 interested candidates, chosen five finalists and recommended the two top candidates to the mayor.
In his letter, the CHA Chairman said of Burnett: “We informed the mayor that we do not recommend him as CEO… he is not a typical candidate for the CEO position given his lack of operational experience.”
“It’s curious that the mayor would want to appoint someone with no management experience to run an agency of this size, especially an agency that’s so important to his base and so important to this political agenda,” ABC7 Political Analyst Laura Washington
The CHA has a $1.3 billion budget and serves 63,000 low-income families.
The other top candidates to run the agency all had been CEO’s with 20 years experience at multiple housing authorities.
“There’s nothing wrong with bringing your allies along. That’s what mayors do, but you want to have someone who’s the best, someone who has a knowledge and experience who can make you look good and help you succeed,” Washington said.
The mayor’s office said given the CHA’s propensity to hire outsiders without critical Chicago connections, said that Burnett, who grew up on Cabrini Green, “addresses some of these stakeholder concerns and has a demonstrated ability to get things done within the Chicago context.”
ABC7 reached out to Burnett to see what he had to say about the concerns about his candidacy. He declined to comment, but remains the mayor’s choice to head the CHA.
The CHA board has not yet voted on any candidates for CEO, officials told ABC7.
Mayor Johnson’s officer shared the following statement with ABC7:
“Given Walter Burnett’s decades of public service, his groundbreaking work on affordable housing development, and his long advocacy for Chicago’s public housing residents, the Mayor has supported Burnett’s candidacy to lead the Chicago Housing Authority.
“Burnett’s application and the Mayor’s support are also in direct response to long-held stakeholder concerns about CHA’s propensity to recruit and hire well-intentioned leaders from outside Chicago who lack critical relationships, historical context, and firsthand experience of Chicago’s public housing system and thus have been unable to realize the system’s potential to create as much housing as possible for those who need it most. Burnett, as an alderperson and former resident of Cabrini Green, addresses some of these stakeholder concerns and has a demonstrated ability to get things done within the Chicago context.
“That said, the Mayor disagrees with several of the details pertaining to the CEO hiring process in the letter submitted to HUD by CHA.
“The Mayor’s focus is on making it easier to build affordable housing through the Cut the Tape initiative and on investing in affordable housing development through the Mayor’s $1.25B Housing and Economic Development Bond. CHA needs a new leader to support the Mayor’s vision to make Chicago the safest, most affordable big city in the United States.”
