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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
8/7/20
Contact: Wiley Cunningham
(215) 626-8818
Philadelphia Housing Action
philadelphiahousingaction@protonmail.com
philadelphiahousingaction.info
Philadelphia Housing Action Submits Freedom of Information Act Request to investigate Violations of Ethics rules by Vocal Supporters
A source has provided information that Ms. Darnetta Arce received property from the Philadelphia Housing Authority and then sold the property in 2018 making a profit of $39,000.
August 7, 2020, Philadelphia, PA
In a recent story published by Generocity, Darnetta Arce, Executive Director of the Brewerytown Sharswood Community Civic Association, criticized #OcccupyPHA and Philadelphia Housing Action members for standing in the way of development.
Ms. Arce stated that, “[The Philadelphia Housing Authority] wanted to make sure that people who wanted to remain in this area or who desired to live in this area could, because they will be offering subsidized housing through their programs whether it was rental or home ownership.”
Philadelphia Housing Action would question her motives due to her conflicts of interest. An anonymous source provided information that Ms. Arce has been a beneficiary of the Philadelphia Housing Authority’s (PHA) land policies for some time and has a vested interest in allowing them to continue. Her husband has been a long-time employee of PHA with a relationship since 2008. Ethics rules clearly apply to current and former employees of federal agencies as well as their spouses. Her actions are not only of interest for policymakers, but she may have broken state and federal laws against self-dealing by government employees.
Ms. Arce received property at 1955 N. Croskey St. from the Philadelphia Housing Authority in 2013 for $11,000 and sold the property to a New Jersey company named Eyechic of Philly LLC for $50,000 in 2018, a $39,000 profit. Eyechic of Philly LLC, then sold the property to a person named Patrice Young for $190,000, an $140,000 profit. The end result is that deeply subsidized public property is now being traded on the private housing market.
Image 1. Sales History for 1955 N. Croskey St., Philadelphia, PA
“We are concerned that there are more deals where individuals in the community are receiving a pecuniary benefit in exchange for support of the Philadelphia Housing Authority. We will submit a FOIA request and conduct an audit of all land sales since 2013 to ensure that there are no conflicts of interest. The public cannot trust a person’s statement who is intimately involved and reaping the beneftis of the privatization of public lands,” stated Sterling Johnson, Organizer with the Black & Brown Worker’s Cooperative.
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