Royal Villa earns strong inspection rating

Some welcome news was recently received by Royal Villa, the 30-apartment facility along First Street Northeast near the New Richland Care Center. The building was issued a rare 99-percent rating after an August inspection by the Minnesota Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

“This score is hard to get,” commented the facility’s executive director, Gail Schmidt. When HUD schedules an inspection, she explains, the facility is given about 30 days advance notice. Once on site, HUD inspectors not only go over the interior and exterior of the structure, its utilities, and its maintenance records, they visit a randomly selected share of the apartments to look for any possible health or safety hazards.

The rating earned during the most recent inspection determines how often the inspections occur. Schmidt mentions a score below 80 percent triggers an inspection one year later; one below 90 percent provides a two-year window. Those facilities which earn 90 percent and above are scheduled three years down the line. Any facilities with substandard ratings risk being removed from the HUD rent subsidized program.

The book of policies and expectations for HUD housing, she says, grew from 80 to more than 400 pages shortly after she took her position. “The regulations and mandates just keep on coming,” she observes. Even with the confidence she felt in the building’s compliance with safety and health standards, the approach of the annual inspection was something she wanted to be fully prepared for. Though the inspection occurred last fall, and a preliminary report was provided, the official score was issued during December.

The 30-apartment building currently houses 39 people, according to Schmidt. She and a part-time maintenance worker are Royal Villa’s only two employees. She said the two of them received assistance from residents in preparing for the August inspection. “Our tenants take real pride in our facility,” she observes.

“Everyone is very surprised to learn our building is 51 years old,” she says. “We work to keep it looking nice.”

A summer landscaping project included planting flowers both in front of and behind the building and repainting the sign. There, too, she said, residents assisted. Some funding from the New Richland Area Foundation allowed the removal of some trees infected by emerald ash borers and the planting of new trees less subject to the parasite.

Schmidt became the facility’s executive director in 2022, taking on the job after a brief retirement showed her she is not suited for retirement just yet. She says her experience serving for 13 years as the city clerk and treasurer, and even for one term as New Richland’s mayor have been helpful in this new role. Speaking of Royal Villa’s residents and of herself, she observes, “We’re connected to this community; we’re proud to be here, and proud of our building what we offer.”