A.M. Sheehan
Advertiser Democrat (Norway, Maine)


Matt Hongoltz-Hetling
Advertiser Democrat (Norway, Maine)

Citation
A.M. Sheehan and Matt Hongoltz-Hetling demonstrated that a news organization does not have to be big to have a big impact. Writing for a small weekly newspaper with a staff of three in rural western Maine, Sheehan and Hongoltz-Hetling exposed the deplorable state of government-subsidized housing in their community after a three-month investigation. Within four hours of publication, the state launched an official probe. Within 48 hours, landlords were being issued citations. Within weeks, the state began reinspecting all of its Section 8 properties statewide. The s ubject of threats for their work, Sheehan and Hongoltz-Hetling remained under increased police protection long after publication of their articles. Their work serves as testimony to the power of dete rmined local coverage.

Excerpt
Living on Section 8
October 27, 2011

AREA - Imagine renting an apartment where, when a neighbor flushes the toilet, waste bubbles up in the bathroom sink. Or living in a third floor apartment with the only way to get out being down the stairs because the exterior fire escape is barely attached ... its nails pulling out of the wall. Or living with everything you own plugged in via various power strips and extension cords to an outlet outside of your apartment. Or with massive holes in the ceiling. Or without an exterior door.
Welcome to the world of lower income rental housing.
Dozens, if not hundreds of people live under the thumb of a handful of landlords who have been renting non-compliant housing for years.
It's a bad joke with a bitter punch line. The rents that the landlords collect on some of their housing units are paid out of the pockets of taxpayers, via federally-supported housing programs.
In this edition, the Advertiser Democrat presents the stories of those who have fallen through the cracks of a system that doesn’t seem to be getting fixed any time soon.
During our three-month investigation, we looked at a handful of addresses in Norway and Paris. The addresses we chose included 15 and 16 Cottage Street and 7 Lynn Street, Norway, owned by Madeline Pratt of Norway and her family; 32 High Street, Paris and 4 Hazen Street, Norway, both of which are owned by Vincent Marcisso of Portland; and 46 Main Street, Paris, which is owned by Gordon Bryant of Cape Elizabeth (but was formerly owned by Marcisso). The buildings are representative of a larger group of aging structures in our community that have fallen out of compliance through years of semi-neglect.
The tenants that we spoke with had different attitudes about their living conditions.
Some were frustrated, like John, who lives in unsafe conditions with his family, or Julia, a single woman with serious health problems who reports that she was pressured by her landlord to break the law by scamming her town of general assistance dollars.
Others seemed passive and defeated, like Lenny, a young single man who has put up with mold, gaping holes in the ceiling, and a complete lack of electric power for months because he is afraid that he could lose his Section 8 status by standing up for his rights. Or Jack, a middle-aged man who knows that he is living in a dangerous building, but is too worried about being evicted to challenge his landlord.
Then there are Susan and Charlotte, two young single mothers who worry about their children and complain about their situations with spirited language, but who seem unable to escape the conditions in which they live.
These and other brave tenants like them - David, a single, middle-aged man with thoughtful eyes and a ready smile, or Lily, a quiet young woman, or Jane, a disabled woman living on her own, as well as others -- they have all come forward to share their stories. Their names and precise addresses have been withheld to help protect their anonymity.


Biography
Anne M. Sheehan

Anne M. Sheehan is the editor of the Advertiser Democrat in Norway, Maine. She has served as a top editor at three weekly newspapers, editor of a trade magazine, and head of the drama department at Kings College, Taunton in England. Her work has been recognized by the New York Press Association, New England Newspaper & Press Association, Maine Press Association and the George Polk Award.

Matt Hongoltz-Hetling

Matt Hongoltz-Hetling is the assistant editor at the Advertiser Democrat, Maine's oldest newspaper. He co-founded the UIC Today, a daily college newspaper in Chicago. He has written for various weekly and regional publications in Maine and his work has been recognized by the Maine Press Association, the New England Newspaper and Press Association, and the George Polk Award. Hongoltz-Hetling is currently working on his first nonfiction book.


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Living on Section 8