CBS19 News at 5: Kindlewood residents share concerns, PHA launches helpline

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (#CBS19NEWS) -- Piedmont Housing Alliance has created a new helpline for residents following reporting about concerns at its Kindlewood housing community. PHA says the new point of contact is meant to make it easier for residents to get help navigating their concerns. Residents can contact PHA at impact@piedmonthousing.org or (434) 227-8952. The organization says the line will be monitored by its team. The new helpline comes at a significant time for Sasha Wilson, a Kindlewood resident who says she has spent years trying to get problems inside her home addressed. Wilson has lived at Kindlewood for more than three years. She says the problems started during her first week, when her apartment flooded. Wilson says a maintenance manager came to look at the flooding and told construction workers it was OK not to fix it because the apartment was new and he did not want to cut anything out. The flooding continued over the years and eventually ruined her belongings. “It got to a point where all of my stuff within the home was completely ruined,” Wilson said. “I reached out to them letting them know several times. I reached out to everybody I can possibly think of. Nobody would help me in this situation.” Wilson also says she dealt with moisture and mold in the home. She says she has been going back and forth to the doctor for more than two years and is now taking medication. She also raised concerns about an energy bill totaling more than $4,000 that she says was placed in her name in 2023. Wilson says the bill included multiple residents in her building and remained in her name until this August. “They put this entire building underneath of my name with all the residents in this building underneath of it,” Wilson said. “They would not take the bill out of my name. They thought it was a joke. The bill was just taken out of my name”. Wilson says she reached out to PHA several times, including the organization’s executive director, but did not get any communication back. Wilson is now moving off the property. PHA says it cannot publicly discuss specific resident situations because they involve private households. In its latest statement, PHA said it takes resident concerns seriously and is committed to responding with “care, urgency, and respect.” The organization also apologized for challenges residents are facing and said it is working directly with residents to understand their concerns and resolve issues when possible.