{"id":292936,"date":"2026-05-14T14:28:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T14:28:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/292936\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T14:28:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T14:28:11","slug":"he-oversaw-millions-in-questionable-houston-housing-authority-spending-then-got-another-housing-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/292936\/","title":{"rendered":"He Oversaw Millions in Questionable Houston Housing Authority Spending\u2014 Then Got Another Housing Job"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two years after a A KPRC 2 investigation<\/a> exposed millions in misspent federal housing dollars at the Houston Housing Authority, the man at the center of the scandal is running another housing agency \u2014 and the federal investigators who swooped in have yet to say a word publicly.<\/p>\n

Two years after a A KPRC 2 investigation exposed millions in misspent federal housing dollars at the Houston Housing Authority, the man at the center of the scandal is running another housing agency \u2014 and the federal investigators who swooped in have yet to say a word publicly. (KPRC, 2026)<\/p>\n

David Northern, who resigned as president and CEO of the Houston Housing Authority amid an investigation into his spending, was hired as CEO <\/a>of the Flint, Michigan Housing Commission \u2014 putting him back in charge of the same type of federal dollars he had been accused of misusing in Houston.<\/p>\n

SEE MORE: KPRC 2 Investigation into the Houston Housing Authority<\/a><\/p>\n

A familiar name helped him land the job<\/p>\n

The person who helped bring Northern to Flint appears to have had a prior financial relationship with him in Houston.<\/p>\n

Damon Duncan served as interim CEO of the Flint Housing Commission and announced on LinkedIn that his company helped recruit Northern for the role. <\/p>\n

Records obtained through an open records request show that just seven months before Northern\u2019s hire in Flint, Northern signed a Houston Housing Authority check paying Duncan nearly $13,000. The memo line on the check noted the payment was for \u201ctechnical assistance at a Cuney Homes on-site visit.\u201d <\/p>\n

Duncan did not return calls for comment. <\/p>\n

Northern did not respond either. <\/p>\n

Neither did the mayor of Flint. <\/p>\n

Houston\u2019s mayor weighs in<\/p>\n

Houston Mayor John Whitmire does not oversee the Houston Housing Authority directly. The agency is funded primarily by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and is governed by an independent board \u2014 one the mayor appoints.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think everybody should be held accountable. But I just can\u2019t speak to Flint. HUD has all of our records. We\u2019re pretty clear that we think they should review them carefully,\u201d Whitmire said.<\/p>\n

When Whitmire took office in January 2024, one of his first actions was replacing the Housing Authority board members. That new board launched the investigation into Northern that ultimately led to his resignation. (KPRC 2026)<\/p>\n

The mayor was quick to note that the board members who hired Northern in 2022 were appointed by his predecessor. <\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing, when I watch your reports, I always will say, come on, Amy (Davis). Emphasize this was all before I got here,\u201d Whitmire said.<\/p>\n

When Whitmire took office in January 2024, one of his first actions was replacing the Housing Authority board members. That new board launched the investigation into Northern that ultimately led to his resignation. <\/p>\n

\u201cI got him off his position, the CEO of the board as quick as possible, replaced it with some fine Houstonians,\u201d Whitmire said.<\/p>\n

When asked whether Northern was fit to lead a housing authority in another city, Whitmire didn\u2019t hold back.<\/p>\n

\u201cFlint, Michigan, I can\u2019t speak for them, if they would have done their due diligence and been above board, I don\u2019t believe Mr. Northern would be fit for that job. Based on his record here,\u201d the mayor said.<\/p>\n

Federal investigators and a frustrating silence<\/p>\n

The FBI and HUD\u2019s Office of Inspector General were among the agencies examining the Houston Housing Authority\u2019s records. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe FBI was there, OIG of HUD. I would assume it gets all the way up to the top, the secretary,\u201d Whitmire said, when asked specifically which law enforcement agencies were investigating Northern\u2019s actions at HHA.<\/p>\n

When asked whether HUD\u2019s inspector general was tracking Northern\u2019s move to Flint, the agency responded: \u201cIt is the policy of the HUD OIG to neither confirm nor deny any investigative actions that may or may not be underway.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Whitmire, the lack of communication from federal agencies has been its own source of frustration.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe send the files, and then nothing. You know what\u2019s even frustrating? How about just a report? What if they said, we don\u2019t like what we see, but it hadn\u2019t reached a certain level?\u201d Whitmire said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey just leave you in limbo, but I do my job and then I move on to the next challenge,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

The Flint Housing Commission has since developed its own financial scandal. <\/p>\n

Signs of progress in Houston<\/p>\n

The newly restructured Houston Housing Authority \u2014 now rebranded as Housing Alliance HTX<\/a> \u2014 has passed new rules governing credit card purchases and financial oversight. Spending on those cards is down 58% since Northern\u2019s departure. <\/p>\n

At Cuney Homes, Larry Grisby said the new administration eventually installed missing tables and benches at the pocket park Northern\u2019s contractor had left unfinished.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I sit out here every morning. I used to clean it. I ain\u2019t got no rags,\u201d Grisby said with a laugh.<\/p>\n

At Kelly Village, some windows remain boarded up \u2014 but residents say crews have been slowly replacing the windows the previous contractors removed.<\/p>\n

Grisby said he never expected Northern to resurface in another housing role.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was saying to myself, \u2018He\u2019ll never work for housing no more. Never,\u2019\u201d Grisby said. \u201cCause what he did, you know. Things that he did.\u201d<\/p>\n

The original investigation: What KPRC 2 uncovered<\/p>\n

More than a quarter of renters in Harris County spend over half their income on housing. For thousands of Houstonians on waiting lists for federal rental assistance, every dollar counts \u2014 which is what made the findings so striking.<\/p>\n

The original KPRC 2 investigation found Northern spent millions of federal dollars on expenses that had nothing to do with helping families.<\/p>\n

Housing Authority credit card statements showed Northern\u2019s senior policy advisor, Na\u2019Shon Edwards, spent more than $9,400 dining out \u2014 including at least six visits to Steak 48. Nearly $100,000 was spent on travel. Northern himself charged more than $2,300 for workout equipment and another $2,300 for chair massages for employees at work.<\/p>\n

Northern was hired as the CEO of the Flint, Michigan Housing Commission \u2014 putting him in charge of the same type of federal housing dollars he had been accused of misusing in Houston. (KPRC, 2026)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt means a lot. It means almost a few months of rent paying,\u201d said Janet Hoffart, who relies on housing subsidies and receives about $1,600 a month in disability and Social Security payments.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am one illness away from losing everything. I am one disability check from losing everything,\u201d said Jessica, who was waiting on a housing voucher at the time of the investigation.<\/p>\n

KPRC 2 Investigates Houston Housing Authority spending. (Copyright 2025 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.)A cooling project that left residents in the cold<\/p>\n

One project meant to help public housing residents beat the Houston heat ended up making their homes less safe.<\/p>\n

Northern hired contractors to install window air conditioning units in every apartment at Kelly Village, Cuney Homes and Irvington Village \u2014 Houston\u2019s three public housing communities. The investigation found Northern went more than $3 million over budget, hiring inexperienced contractors who blocked fire escapes during installation. <\/p>\n

KPRC 2 Investigates the Houston Housing Authority. HHA A\/C units installed incorrectly cost taxpayers millions of dollars. (Copyright 2024 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.)<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought it was a good thing, until you know, everything transpired,\u201d said Shamica Killings, who worked at Kelly Village during the project.<\/p>\n

To fix the fire hazards, crews had to remove the newly installed units \u2014 but the original windows had already been discarded. Workers boarded them up and moved on.<\/p>\n

Northern hired 22 different companies to install the units. One supervisor, who made $75 an hour working for one of those companies, started his own company just four months later. Northern then awarded that new company more than $1 million to fix the fire hazard issues the original project had created. <\/p>\n

One of the companies hired for the AC installation was a clothing company based in Chicago \u2014 connected to a Housing Authority employee Northern had recently brought on from Chicago. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s odd because you would expect to want to hire companies that had the experience to do the job, and you would want to go local,\u201d said Houston City Council member Julian Ramirez. \u201cHouston\u2019s a huge city. We have plenty of companies that can do good AC work, so why would you have to go to Illinois?\u201d<\/p>\n

Incomplete park, silenced employees, a growing tab<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s more on the park project mentioned above. Residents at Cuney Homes were also left with an incomplete pocket park \u2014 missing tables, benches and lighting \u2014 even after records showed Northern approved paying the contractor more than $766,000. <\/p>\n

Proposed rendering for upgrades to a pocket park near Columbia Tap Trail in Houston’s Third Ward. The Houston Housing Authority has yet to complete this project that cost taxpayers a lot of money. (Copyright 2024 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.)<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s supposed to be two benches. Supposed to have been a bench here and a bench right here. And there\u2019s supposed to have been a table right here,\u201d said Larry Grisby, a Cuney Homes resident.<\/p>\n

The spending didn\u2019t stop there. <\/p>\n

Northern paid out $289,133 in settlements to housing executives he dismissed \u2014 always keeping payouts just under the $100,000 threshold that would have required board approval. Every employee who received a settlement signed a non-disclosure agreement. <\/p>\n

In February 2024, Northern announced that funding for housing vouchers for low-income families had run out. Around the same time, he distributed more than $166,000 in raises to five employees in a single round of increases. <\/p>\n

When the investigation added it all up, the total tied to mismanagement, waste or questionable decisions surpassed $4 million.<\/p>\n

Suspension, resignation \u2014 and six-figure payouts<\/p>\n

Within six weeks of the investigation\u2019s publication, the Housing Authority board voted to suspend Northern with pay while it conducted its own review. Northern ultimately resigned. The board also eliminated the position held by Edwards.<\/p>\n

Both left Texas \u2014 each with six-figure payouts. Northern received $210,252. Edwards received $27,692. <\/p>\n

The total connected to Northern\u2019s tenure, including those payouts: more than $4.2 million.<\/p>\n

KPRC 2 will continue to follow this story as federal investigators review the Houston Housing Authority\u2019s records. Until those answers come, the team will keep pressing \u2014 because for the thousands of Houstonians still waiting on housing assistance, accountability isn\u2019t optional. If you have a tip or question, email Investigator Amy Davis at ADavis@kprc.com. <\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two years after a A KPRC 2 investigation exposed millions in misspent federal housing dollars at the Houston…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":292937,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[94707,56,58,5965,57],"class_list":["post-292936","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-enough","tag-houston","tag-houston-headlines","tag-houston-housing-authority","tag-houston-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/292936","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=292936"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/292936\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/292937"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=292936"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=292936"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=292936"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}