Arundel Community Development Services (ACDS) Executive Director Kathleen Koch has announced her retirement, effective Dec. 31.
Koch became the founding executive director of ACDS in 1993, and her tenure saw the organization engage in revitalization efforts in communities across the county, including Bacontown, Galesville and Brooklyn Park. During the pandemic, ACDS’s eviction protection work helped keep residents in their homes when they faced COVID-driven economic hardship.
Under Koch’s leadership, ACDS created and preserved more than 3,000 affordable rental units, and built out a model property rehabilitation and homeownership program. In 2013, Ms. Koch was named the Housing Person of the Year by the Maryland Affordable Housing Coalition in recognition of her statewide effort to promote affordable housing.