Toby Cox of WHRO spoke with LASEV Deputy Director and Director of Litigation Melissa Bonfiglio about the realities of renting with a Housing Choice Voucher in Hampton Roads.
Former Tidewater Gardens resident Zenobia Wilson shared her story with WHRO, including the stress of trying to find a unit in our area. The Tidewater Gardens community was demolished by the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority and residents were promised that their new Housing Choice Voucher would allow them better choice in both the type of home and neighborhood they lived in. Zenobia’s story is just one example of the ways in which this promise has fallen short and should be a warning to those in other NRHA public housing developments, such as Young Terrace and Calvert Square, that are scheduled to be demolished in FY2027.
The article also features research and comparison maps by CNU professor Johnny Finn, illustrating the ways in which the voucher system fails to meet its goals throughout Hampton Roads, not just in Norfolk. Finn points out that “almost all the HCV-eligible housing units are in highly segregated, high poverty neighborhoods.”
You can read the full article here.