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Louisville Affordable Housing Trust Fund Seeks New Executive Director

Affordable housing got a boost in this year's city spending plan.
Affordable housing got a boost in this year's city spending plan.

The Louisville Affordable Housing Trust Fund is looking for a new executive director after the departure of Rachel Hurst.

Hurst has led the trust fund since 2012. The trust fund provides services such as grants and loans for the development and rehabilitation of  affordable housing in Louisville.

In a statement, the trust fund board chairwoman Natalie Harris said Hurst's departure is the result of "lengthy discussions" that resulted in a call for new leadership. The trust fund's board consists of 11 members with backgrounds in the public realm and private sector enterprises.

In an interview, Harris would not provide specific details on what spurred the discussions.

Hurst did not return a request for comment.

Metro Councilman Bill Hollander, a Louisville Affordable Housing Trust Fund board member, said the board is actively seeking new leadership.

Harris will act as interim executive director until the position is filled.

"Our priority is hiring someone with strong housing development experience who can effectively manage the $10 million we need to begin meeting the community need," she said.

Advocates for the Louisville Affordable Housing Trust Fund have long called for a permanent stream of revenue that would provide the funding needed to find and put more people into affordable housing.

Louisville needs about 65,000 more affordable housing units, Hurst said in June.

A 2015 needs assessment survey administered by the Louisville Metro Department of Community Services found the most pressing issue among responding residents is the need for more affordable housing.

Ongoing and forthcoming initiatives, including Mayor Greg Fischer’s near $12 million Louisville CARES initiative that aims to create more affordable housing, will create about 6,500 units.

And the loss of an executive director for the housing trust fund comes as the CARES initiative is just getting started.

Harris said Hurst's departure does not impact the progress of the CARES initiative. She said city officials with Louisville Forward will look to begin examining proposed projects as soon as February.

A job posting for the executive director position can be found here.

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Jacob Ryan is the managing editor of the Kentucky Center for Investigative reporting. He's an award-winning investigative reporter who joined LPM in 2014. Email Jacob at jryan@lpm.org.