A security officer at a Little Rock housing authority building prohibited a resident from speaking to a reporter this week, citing a lease agreement that she said bars media interviews.
The Metropolitan Housing Alliance is a public agency that provides rental assistance to people with low incomes. The alliance and Gorman & Co. -- which manages the Fred W. Parris Tower on South Broadway in Little Rock -- say they aren't aware of any policy that limits interviews.
The reporter was asking the resident about what he thought of renovations underway at the tower.
"You can't just come in here and do a whole interview. ... You know better," the security officer told the resident, adding that he risked eviction if he continued speaking to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reporter.
A staff member at the security desk then walked the reporter out the door and said not to return without speaking to the manager.
"You got yourself in trouble," the guard told the resident Thursday afternoon.
She also would not allow the reporter to visit the resident's apartment with him, citing "publicity" when asked for a reason why.
Lakriesha Wise, the building manager, said in a phone interview that it's always been the rule at the building not to allow television news cameras inside, but she wasn't sure about the rules for reporters without cameras. She said she wasn't sure what the leases say about it or what the new management company's policy says.
Gorman & Co., a Wisconsin-based firm, runs the Fred W. Parris Tower, although it is owned by the Metropolitan Housing Alliance.
Andre Blakley, a division president with the company, said the building's security is contracted through a third party.
"The security company does not work for Gorman," Blakley said. "It's an outside security company, nor does the security company likely have any idea what our lease agreements state."
Housing Authority officials said they did not have a copy of the lease agreements to provide to the newspaper, and Gorman was unable to provide a copy by press time late Friday.
Blakley said he was not aware of any policies banning residents from talking to reporters.
"It could be just an anomaly," he said. "I would be very surprised if that's in there," referring to the lease agreement.
He planned to ask management officials at the tower to address the issue with security. The language in the lease was approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, he said.
He added that Gorman was still reviewing the security company's contract. The security company was already in place when Gorman took over the day-to-day operations of the tower earlier this year.
The three commissioners who could be reached for interviews this week condemned the incident. Commissioner Kenyon Lowe said it was "just a threat."
"Our tenants have every right to talk to anybody," Lowe said. "Just because you're in public housing doesn't mean you give up your constitutional rights."
Commissioner Lee Lindsey said he hadn't heard of any policy that bars residents from speaking to journalists and questioned whether such a practice would be legal.
Leta Anthony, the board chairman, said the issue was one she'd bring up during a meeting with Gorman officials in a few weeks.
"We know that as part of how it works, each tenant signs a lease," Anthony said. "We are not aware of the language [in the lease]."
The tower is home to people ages 50 and up. It has 250 units, and recently transitioned to a Section 8 program through the Rental Assistance Demonstration program that is administered by HUD.
A Section on 12/29/2018