Charlottesville Tomorrow

Giving More People a Say in Affordable Housing in Central Virginia

Erin O’Hare

Local reporting by Charlottesville Tomorrow highlighted how the sale of a mobile home park can exacerbate housing insecurity and turn people’s lives upside down. As the mobile home parks disappear, “so does the low-cost housing they provide,” O’Hare wrote. “Mobile and manufactured homes are the largest source of non-subsidized affordable housing in the United States,” according to the U.S. Office of Housing and Urban Development.

O’Hare’s reporting also addressed issues of developers demolishing lower-cost units for luxury homes and challenges of affordable senior living. The coverage also included a resource guide with information about affordable housing and programs that can help with issues such as leaky roofs and eviction programs.

“The depth of this coverage, and the way the community came together in response, shows that Charlottesville Today is embedded in place and with people in a way that’s changing the city,” a judge wrote. “This story pulled to top place in my mind because of the strong model it provides for other news organizations to follow.”