Agency overview | |
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Formed | 1933 |
Jurisdiction | Cuyahoga County, Ohio, U.S. |
Headquarters | 8120 Kinsman Road Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
Agency executive |
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Website | cmha |
Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority Police Department | |
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Common name | CMHA Police |
Agency overview | |
Formed | 1969 |
Employees | 135, including Officers and Support Staff |
Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
Jurisdictional structure | |
Operations jurisdiction* | County of Cuyahoga in the state of Ohio, United States |
Size | CMHA Property |
Population | 55,000 |
Governing body | Cuyahoga County Department of Public Safety & Justice Services |
General nature | |
Operational structure | |
Headquarters | 5715 Woodland Avenue Cleveland, Ohio 44104 |
Agency executive | Andres Gonzalez, Chief of Police |
Operations |
2
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Facilities | |
Headquarters | 1 |
Website | |
www |
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Footnotes | |
* Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. |
The Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) is a governmental organization responsible for the ownership and management of low-income housing property in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. The organization was founded in 1933, making it the first housing authority in the United States.
During the 1930s, Cleveland Councilman Ernest J. Bohn, led an effort to create public housing for low-income families. At that time, low income families in very poor conditions. Bohn sought out unsafe tumbledown shanties, known as "fire-traps", to replace with improved, affordable housing that struggling families could use to improve their livelihood and progress to home ownership. The first development to break ground was Olde Cedar in the Central neighborhood, becoming the first public housing development in the country and receiving its first occupants in 1937. This development would soon be followed by Lakeview, Outhwaite Homes and Woodhill Homes, all of which are now eligible for designation on the National Register of Historic Places. The first high-rise constructed for public housing was the Cedar Extension High-Rise, built to accommodate seniors. It was first occupied in 1955.
During the 1960s and 70s, in addition to the developments CMHA was building, the organization began acquire existing properties from many different local sources.
Following the establishment of the Section 8 Program with a law enacted by Congress in 1974, subsidies were offered for low income families seeking residency in privately owned housing. CMHA began administering the program at this time.
During the 1990s, CMHA improved safety for the residents of its properties by pioneering the use of defensible space design concepts such as private entryways, exterior lighting, and perimeter fencing. CMHA also opened the first residential substance abuse treatment center in the country—Miracle Village, at Outhwaite Homes. Other notable milestones for CMHA in the 1990s include a primary healthcare clinic and the Carl B. Stokes Social Services Mall, a one-stop shopping facility offering social, health-related, career counseling, and training services. This facility was the first of its kind in the nation.