A tiny Washington County city that ran afoul of the housing authority that governs it soon will face stricter control of its finances and policies.
A property management company will take over in Landfall within three weeks because the City Council fired its city manager this summer without the approval of the Washington County Housing and Redevelopment Authority, said Barbara Dacy, the housing authority's executive director.
"Closer oversight and management is the new approach," Dacy said Thursday of Landfall, a 304-site manufactured home park.
The county housing authority owns the city's land and allows it to continue as an affordable housing sector. Landfall, which has about 700 residents, previously was a private trailer park.
A new interim operating agreement approved Oct. 3 allows Durand and Associates Property Management Inc. of South St. Paul to assume some management responsibilities on behalf of the county housing authority.
The new agreement won't affect Landfall's mayoral race, Dacy said.
Four candidates are challenging Mayor Greg "Flash" Feldbrugge in November, in large part because of disagreement over the council's firing of City Manager Colleen Arndt this summer and an attempt to end the city's contract with Maplewood police.
Dacy said the new agreement was "a middle-ground approach" to allow the city some autonomy in determining its own affairs while making sure that Landfall meets its contractual obligations to the county housing authority.
