City Manager Tom Modica announced the appointment of Alison King as the Acting Director for the Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services (Health Department), effective Oct. 28. Currently serving as the Bureau Manager for the Housing Authority of the City of Long Beach (Housing Authority), Ms. King brings to the position five years of experience as a public health administrator and over 20 years of human services experience. The City will conduct a national recruitment to fill the permanent position.

“Ms. King is an accomplished housing administrator and forward-thinking visionary dedicated to creating safe, comfortable and affordable living opportunities,” said City Manager Tom Modica. “With her knowledge base and compassion, I am confident in her abilities to lead the Health Department during this time.”

In her most recent role as Deputy Executive Director, Ms. King oversees a $110 million budget that subsidizes rental housing for more than 7,000 local low-income families. Under her leadership, the City’s Housing Authority awarded over 900 housing vouchers, 10 affordable housing development contracts for 522 project-based voucher units, and commitments for nine additional developments that will create over 400 new units in the next year, all of which support the City’s ongoing efforts to increase the local affordable housing stock. As a testament to her leadership, the Housing Authority has consistently been designated as a high performing agency by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Most recently, through Ms. King’s leadership and dedication to the Emergency Housing Voucher program, earlier this year, the City’s Housing Authority committed all 582 qualifying voucher holders to permanent housing, an identified short-term goal established at the start of the local homelessness emergency proclamation on Jan. 10. Additionally, under her direction, the City was selected as one of eight Continuum of Care communities in California to receive Stability Housing Vouchers, which will help connect even more qualifying individuals experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness to permanent housing.

“I look forward to continuing the great work of our City’s Health Department as we work to create a sustainable, inclusive and thriving Long Beach,” said King.

Ms. King has served in the City’s Housing Authority since 2005, holding various positions of leadership before being named Bureau Manager in 2016. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Fisk University.

In September 2023, the City announced the departure of current Director, Kelly Colopy, whose last day with the City is Oct. 27. Ms. King will temporarily serve as the Acting Director until the completion of the recruitment and selection process for the new director.

More information about the Health Department is available at longbeach.gov/health.