The Butler County Housing Authority has taken another step to converting its properties to Section 8 multifamily housing.

The conversion would be done through the U.S. Department of Urban Development’s Rental Assistance Demonstration program.

The authority’s board on Friday voted to prepare the application for six apartment complexes and 14 scattered sites across the city.

The complexes include Presidents Square, Maple Court, Greystone Manor, Shore Street, Diamond Street, and Cliffside apartments.

The scattered sites include single family units and duplexes.

The move would convert those properties from Section 9 public housing to Section 8 multifamily housing.

Perry O’Malley, the executive director of the authority, said the move would give the authority more control over the apartments they manage.

The biggest change for the authority is that it will be able to use private debt and equity to improve its properties. The authority is not permitted to borrow money for improvements as public housing.

“Under the multifamily plan, the authority would be more like a real estate firm,” he said. “Under public housing, the buildings are micromanaged by HUD.”

After the conversion, the authority would own the properties, rather than simply managing HUD’s public housing.

The Rental Assistance Demonstration program would provide the authority a 20-year contract with guaranteed funding from HUD. O’Malley said it is a much better option than relying on the constantly changing budget year after year.

“We never have any idea what the budget will be for next year,” he said. “And we’ve been getting cut every year for 15 years. The uncertainty makes it very difficult for housing authorities to operate.”

O’Malley said authority officials have visited each site that would be switched to Section 8 housing and have spoken with the residents.

“The two questions everyone had regarded whether their rent would go up and whether they would have to move,” O’Malley said. “The answer is ‘no’ to both.”

O’Malley said while the funding of the authority would change after the conversion, everything would stay the same for the tenants.

“After explaining the program, everyone was fine with it,” O’Malley said of the tenants. “The residents are still under HUD protection.”

There are fewer than 500 individual apartment units included in the properties.

The authority has already converted its Terrace Apartment complex to Section 8 to begin work on an $11 million renovation project there.

O’Malley said the authority will submit the applications to HUD by the end of the year.

After being accepted, the authority would then enter into a contract with HUD to covert the properties to Section 8 housing. The authority would have until 2015 to withdraw from the program.