DeKalb County Housing Authority to appoint interim executive director

DeKALB – The DeKalb County Housing Authority is expected to appoint an interim executive director this week, as its longtime executive director leaves her job Friday.

The housing authority’s Board of Commissioners will meet during a special meeting Friday to vote on the matter. According to the authority documents released ahead of the meeting, Mitch Hallgren has been selected as the agency’s new interim executive director, and is expected to be voted into the position Friday.

If voted in, Hallgren would remain as the interim director until the board appoints a person to step into the role full time, confirmed Vivian Bright, operations director for the housing authority.

Current Executive Director Michelle Perkins announced her resignation March 1, which will be effective May 27, according to documents obtained by the Daily Chronicle through the Freedom of Information Act.

Since that time, the housing authority’s board has solicited candidates for the role, including an April special meeting to begin the interview and selection process.

According to a job description posted on the government’s website, the full-time executive director posting lists an annual salary between $95,000 and $140,000. The application sought those with at least five years of leadership experience, including work in public housing, a bachelor’s degree and a driver’s license. The position also will offer benefits, including health insurance, a retirement plan, vehicle allowance, 12 paid federal holidays, sick leave and paid time off.

In a March document providing notice to the housing authority board of Perkins’ forthcoming departure, housing authority staff listed what they called Perkins’ “outstanding leadership” at the department.

During Perkins’ time as director, the housing authority purchased the Briarwood Apartment complex in DeKalb and received the Illinois Association of Housing Authorities Operational Excellence Award in 2021.