Building Once Owned by Neo-Nazi in Roanoke Gets Face-Lift
roanoke.com
roanoke.com
Marsha Johnson and Mark Moomaw paint together in a second floor room.
Former neo-Nazi leader William A. White once owned the home in the 1600 block of Chapman Avenue Southwest where a diverse group of about 40 volunteers gathered Saturday to begin fixing up the empty house.
White’s prior ownership of the rental property in Roanoke seemed of no significance to the sweating, smiling workers who swarmed the two-story, brick-veneer house built in 1920.
“We’ve been told that’s who owned it but we really don’t want to get into that,” said Ed Murray, executive director of Rebuilding Together Roanoke, which now owns the property.
“It’s our impression that it was certainly not up to standards when he owned it, but that’s history,” Murray said.
The goal is a completely rehabilitated duplex structure that will provide affordable housing for two families.
Wells Fargo Bank donated the foreclosed property to Rebuilding Together Roanoke, a nonprofit, nonsectarian organization whose focus is providing safe living conditions for low-income, elderly or disabled homeowners who cannot afford to maintain their properties.