Wall Street Guy to Run City Housing

Tino Hernandez, who quit as the head of the Housing Authority last year, had a background in social services, and is returning to managing the drug treatment center he'd worked at before. John Rhea, whose appointment to chair the NYCHA was announced today, has a background in investment banking; he was previously a managing director at Lehman Brothers and JP Morgan. Maybe that's what it takes to run the Authority now: it's running $137 million deficit, and accounting for the $423 million in stimulus money the NYCHA is expecting will require some experience with a green eyeshade. Like the Mayor, he's bipartisan, having contributed to both McCain and Obama in the last election (though he's paid more Democrats than Republicans, including Rahm Emanuel). Rhea is also a winner of the Joseph Papp Racial Harmony Award.