Change in leadership coming at Ocean City's housing agency

The "rock star" executive director who reformed the Ocean City Housing Authority’s shaky finances and management following an embezzlement scandal by her predecessor is retiring and will be replaced by another top official at the agency.

Jacqueline Jones, who first took over the authority’s leadership in 2017, will retire on Dec. 31. Succeeding Jones as the new executive director will be Ron Miller, who currently serves as the authority’s director of affordable housing.

Voting unanimously, the authority’s board of commissioners approved Miller’s appointment following a closed session during a meeting Tuesday. His salary as the new executive director still must be negotiated by the board.

Bob Barr, chairman of the board, praised Miller for his lengthy experience in the public housing sector as well as his personality. Barr also said that Miller’s vision for the authority aligns with the goals of the board members.

“Overall, he has great experience,” Barr said in an interview after the meeting. “He’s also a great human being. He wants to provide safe and exceptional housing for our residents.”

“I couldn’t be happier with his appointment. He’s an excellent human being, and that’s the most important thing,” Barr added.

Miller, who has worked in the public housing sector for 21 years, said he plans no changes at the authority once he takes charge.

“The authority is very successful. It is a well-run authority,” Miller said.

It was not always that way. Before Jones took over in 2017, the authority was rocked by an embezzlement scandal involving former Executive Director Alesia Watson.

Watson was removed as chief executive in 2017 after she admitted she had embezzled federal housing funds to pay credit card bills for personal expenses. Federal prosecutors said between $6,500 and $15,000 was lost in the scheme. Watson was sentenced to three years of probation.

In only a year at the helm, Jones was credited with stabilizing the authority’s finances and management following Watson’s troubled reign. An auditor who analyzed the authority’s finances in 2018 labeled it a “remarkable” turnaround.

Barr also praised Jones repeatedly over the years for reforming the authority. From almost the very beginning, Barr called her a “rock star.”

    Speitel Commons is one of the newest of the Ocean City Housing Authority buildings that offer affordable living for residents.
  

Jones performs a variety of roles. In addition to leading the Ocean City Housing Authority, she also serves as chief executive of the public housing agencies in Vineland, Cape May and Buena. Her annual salary is $182,000 for leading all four agencies.

Jones said she began her career in 1981 and has spent most of it in the public housing sector.

“It is time for me to go,” she said of her retirement.

She expressed confidence in Miller’s ability to lead the Ocean City Housing Authority.

“They will be in excellent hands. Ron has a lot of work experience,” Jones said.

The Ocean City Housing Authority oversees affordable public housing for senior citizens and families at the Pecks Beach Village, Speitel Commons and Bayview Manor complexes.

Under Jones, the authority has pursued a strategy of replacing antiquated, flood-prone housing developments dating to the 1960s with attractive new affordable housing complexes that blend in with the surrounding neighborhoods.

In 2021, the authority built the nearly $7 million Speitel Commons housing complex for senior citizens. The four-story building includes 32 units at the corner of Sixth Street and West Avenue. It was hailed as a success for integrating public housing with attractive architecture in the heart of downtown Ocean City.

Following up on Speitel Commons, the authority embarked on a new type of project in 2024 that featured five duplexes totaling 10 units of affordable rental housing for families having low or moderate incomes.

The distinctly residential duplexes on Bay, Simpson and Haven avenues were designed to seamlessly fit in with the surrounding neighborhoods.

    The designs for the proposed Pecks Beach Village housing project include 15 duplex-style buildings containing four units each.
  

Next, the authority plans to build what will be its most ambitious project ever, the 60-unit Pecks Beach Vilage affordable housing development featuring 15 duplex-style buildings on the north side of Fourth Street.

The authority awarded a $23 million construction contract for the Pecks Beach Village project in 2024, but is still working through the preliminary steps and final funding arrangements before work can begin.

Jones expressed hope that construction could begin by the end of the year or in early 2026. It would take about two years to build, putting the completion sometime in 2027.

The existing 40-unit Pecks Beach Village housing complex on the south side of Fourth Street will be demolished when the new project is completed. It dates to the 1960s.

Financing for the new Pecks Beach Village project will consist of a mix of grants and loans from the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, funding from the city of Ocean City and tax credits given to private investors. The project will help Ocean City meet its state-mandated obligation to provide its “fair share” of affordable housing under a court settlement in 2018.