Jacqueline Hickey, formerly of Wareham’s Community and Economic Development Authority, has been named the new Administrator of the Wareham Housing Authority. She is part of a revamped authority, rebounding from a tough 2013.

Hickey was selected from a pool of roughly 30 candidates in an application process that took over a month to complete earlier this year.

Robert Powilatis, Chairman of the Housing Authority Board of Directors, explained the process that ended with the hiring of Hickey: “We had a process where members took applications home… and went through a checklist. We ended up doing two [rounds of] interviews.”

Powilatis has high praise for Hickey.  She “doesn’t just do her work and go home. She’s dedicated. She’s worth her weight in gold. There was so much wrong, we needed someone on-site. She knows the town. She knows the residents.”

Hickey's hiring comes after an unsettling year at the Housing Authority.  The position was originally titled Executive Director and was held for many years by Pamela Sequeira, who announced her retirement in June. Sequeira initially agreed to stay on temporarily after announcing her retirement to give the board suitable time to find a replacement. However, in a change of mind, Sequeira left the job abruptly on July 22.

Her departure occurred at the same time as the Authority's state appointee and a board member resigned, and as a state review of Authority records documented some troubling financial and management practices at the Authority.

The Authority is trying to put that in the past, Powilatis said. He said Hickey, who had worked in finance at CEDA, is a part of this shift.

“I had worked with CEDA for awhile, and I felt like I wasn't able to use all my talents,” Hickey said. “My son, who’s 18, is going off on his own, so I felt like I have time to spread my wings.”

The Housing Authority operates two apartment complexes for low-to-moderate income seniors and disabled adults: Redwood Park on Church Street and Agawam Village on Sandwich Road.

Hickey’s goals for herself are to be 100 percent compliant with the state Department of Housing and Community Development’s requirements of the Authority and to provide adequate housing for low-to-moderate-income seniors.

Above all, she wants the Authority to be transparent. “We are responsible for the public trust,” Hickey said. "This idea of transparency applies not only to taxpayers, but the Authority’s residents as well. I want to be opening the door to our residents."

According to Powilatis, she has certainly done so to this point, even going as far as shoveling snow for the Authority’s residents.

“I picked up the shovel, and told the maintenance guys, ‘you guys do the plowing, and I’ll shovel,’” Hickey described. “I want everyone in the Authority to come together as a team.”

“That’s the kind of people you want in this industry… people who care,” said Powilatis.

As for the immediate future, Hickey wants to upgrade toilets and stoops in 2014.

To further help residents, Hickey wants to be fully compliant with the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program which helps subsidize living costs.

Hickey faces other expectations from the Authority’s board. The biggest task from the board will be compiling a budget for fiscal year 2015, which is due in July. The 2013 budget was never submitted, which resulted in the Authority not being able to receive all the funding for which it was eligible.

Hickey’s salary is $40,750, significantly lower than sequeira's salary of more than $60,000 a year, according to Powilatis.

Despite still feeling the effects of 2013, Powilatis wants the Authority to move forward as much as possible. Naming Hickey administrator instead of Executive Director was part of that move forward.

“After the board selected her [at Nov. 1 meeting], Hickey had negotiations and we agreed to change the title,” Powilatis said. “We put the old name in the past. It’s like calling the Town Administrator a Town Manager.”

“It’s a good step forward,” said Powilatis.

“I’m happy for her,” said Salvador Pina, director of the Community and Economic Development Authority. “Any time one of our employees can get a position that’s a promotion – that’s wonderful.”