NILES — For the third year in a row, the Niles Housing Commission, which leases 179 public housing units, received a “High Performer” status by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Within a few years, the organization went from being one of the worst housing commissions in the state to one of the best, said Sanya Vitale, Niles’ community development director and a member of the commission.

“This magic light went off,” Vitale said. “Everyone just started clicking with each other. Residents realized that we really do care about them, that we want to make their house a home, and that we are here for them and they aren’t here for us.”

About five years ago, the city of Niles was in jeopardy of defaulting on its agreement with HUD. The occupancy rate in its 129 apartment and 50 house units was low, building structure issues were mounting and bedbugs were an increasing problem. Residents were complaining to the federal government, she said.

Then, the city appointed a new board.

“What we did was to work our butts off,” Vitale said.

The board brought in a residential management company, Fourmidable, of Bingham Farms, Michigan, to take over. The board also put money to use that previous boards were unable to allocate. The board put in about $1 million of work into the housing units.

Now the bed bug problem is gone, and current funds will be used to build a new roof for the commission’s high-rise apartments.

It is also the commission’s goal to spend its approximately $250,000 HUD budget quickly and purposefully. Installing new sheds, driveways, windows and kitchens into the commission’s one- to five-bedroom houses is a priority. So is adding new parking near the high-rise.

The high-rise, where the Niles Housing Commission is also located, contains two common areas, a community kitchen and a resident council headquarters. A garden club has started, and the commission has saved a parcel of land to install raised beds for tenants to grow food.

Residents are falling in love with the commission again, Vitale said.

“There are people who have lived [in housing commission units] their whole lives, since the ‘60s,” she said. “For them to be able to remake [their] home[s] again has proven to be what we needed as a community to reconnect with one another.”

One key reason for the rekindling has been the work of Fourmidable.

“Fourmidable has done a remarkable job of being very consistent with our tenants,” she said.  “They’re very caring and good-natured.”

Vitale said it’s rare to find those characteristics in property managers, especially those that manage federal properties.

While Fourmidable staff could not be reached for comment, Sabrina Bollinger, its director of affordable operations, did make a comment in a May 28 press release dispersed by the company.

“We are very pleased with all the improvements and progress we have been able to make since we became the management agent in 2015,” she in the release. “We are excited to continue our relationship with the Niles Housing Commission and improve the quality of life for our residents.”

Fourmidable also manages nine other housing commissions in Michigan and Ohio.

Vitale said Niles scored high in all categories of the HUD assessment.

The score will allow the commission to be inspected biennially rather than annually.