Lucas Metropolitan Housing Receives Ohio Auditor of State Award for Second Year in a Row

Joaquin Cintron Vega, President and CEO of Lucas Metropolitan Housing (LMH), announced today that LMH has been awarded the Auditor of State Award for the second consecutive year. The Auditor of State's office audits nearly 5,900 entities and fewer than 8% are even eligible for the award. The award is presented to local government and school districts, upon completion of a financial audit, that meets the following criteria of a "clean" audit report:

• The entity must file their financial reports with the Auditor of State within 150 days of fiscal year end
• Have a "clean audit" with no findings for recovery, material citations, material weaknesses, significant deficiencies, single audit findings or questioned costs
• The entity's management letter contains no comments related to:o Ethics referrals
o Questioned costs less than $10,000
o Lack of timely report submission
o Bank reconciliation issues
o Failure to obtain a timely Single Audit
o Findings for recovery less than $500
o Public meetings or public records issues
• The entity shall also have no other financial concerns

"At Lucas Metropolitan Housing, we are very honored by the distinction received from the Ohio Auditor of State, stated Cintron Vega. "To be recognized with this award is evidence of the hard work and dedication that our staff commits to maintain effective operations, in compliance with all financial and programmatic requirements. This is a win, not only for Lucas Metropolitan Housing, but also for the communities we proudly serve."

Shimeako Cole, Chief Financial Officer, added "This award is a representation of the hard work and dedication that can be seen in all departments within the agency."

Hugh Grefe, Chairman of the LMH Board, stated, "We would like to thank the State Auditor's office for this recognition. The Board of Commissioners would also like to thank Joaquin and the entire LMH team for the hard work, dedication and effort that made this award possible. LMH is dedicated to being an organization of excellence and we are proud to have received the award again this year."

About Lucas Metropolitan Housing
Established in 1933, Lucas Metropolitan Housing (LMH) continues to provide affordable housing to adults, seniors and children in its Public Housing, Housing Choice Voucher, Mixed-Income and Market Rate housing units. LMH also provides a myriad of programs and opportunities designed to improve the total quality of life for our residents, with the ultimate goal of achieving self-sufficiency. The programs and services are the results of successful collaborations with numerous community partners.

Our current housing portfolio consists of 2,669 Public Housing units; 4,685 Housing Choice Vouchers; 322 Low-Income Housing Tax Credit units; 8 Market Rate units and 104 Homeownership Properties. There are approximately 17,500 people who reside in LMH properties. Lucas Metropolitan Housing partners with ALL people and organizations willing to exchange ideas and efforts to enhance Toledo, Lucas County and the world.