Town Bids Farewell to Sudbury Housing Authority Executive Director

The Sudbury Housing Authority held an ice cream social on Aug. 12 at Musketaquid Village in recognition of the retirement of Executive Director Jo-Anne Howe.

The social also welcomed Sheila Cusolito, the new executive director of the authority.

A lifelong resident of Sudbury, Howe was successful in the 1980s helping the housing authority develop 12 units of affordable housing. Not satisfied, she spent the next 20 years trying to find land to develop more. After several setbacks trying to acquire land, she suggested that the SHA redevelop its own properties and her idea evolved into a plan in which four aging single-family housing authority homes were razed and five duplex homes were built, totaling 10 units of affordable housing.  An existing unit was included in the financing, resulting in a total of 11 units of permanently affordable rental housing for families.

Earlier this year, the SHA was honored with an Outstanding Agency Award by the Massachusetts Chapter, National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (MassNAHRO) for the creation of 11 new affordable housing units on five scattered sites in Sudbury.

The award was presented to Howe at the MassNAHRO Annual Conference in Hyannis. It recognized the SHA for its work in adding the new housing units.

The Sudbury Housing Authority owns, maintains and manages 21 single-family and duplex rental houses for low-income families that are scattered throughout town, and 64 apartments for people over 60 and disabled people at Musketahquid Village on Hudson Road.