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Alexandria council member calls for investigation into housing authority CEO living in public housing

Erik C. Johnson, CEO of ARHA, asks City Council to back the Silver Fox plan, June 10, 2025 (staff photo by James Cullum)

A member of the Alexandria City Council has called for an immediate investigation into how Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority (ARHA) CEO Erik Johnson lived in a public housing property with his family in Old Town.

Johnson confirmed Wednesday that he moved into a property on Cook Street in July and is in the process of moving out. Johnson said that he was alerted that it was an issue by an ARHA Board member. Johnson was hired a year ago and started work in Sept. 2024.

“I stayed in an ARHA property temporarily while I was transitioning residences,” Johnson told ALXnow. “I will be vacating that, but it was for less than a month… We thought we had the approval to do it the right way. It was that that didn’t end up being the case, and so we’re moving.”

Alexandria City Council member John Taylor Chapman is calling for the investigation. Chapman was informed this week that Johnson lived in ARHA housing.

“We are calling for an immediate investigation into how and why the CEO of ARHA took a unit away from the public for his own use,” Chapman told ALXnow on Wednesday. “I am currently working with others within the city to reach out to the board in an official capacity to conduct this investigation.”

The ARHA Board of Commissioners put out the following statement on Thursday (Aug. 21)

The Board of Commissioners recently became aware that our CEO, Erik Johnson, moved into an ARHA property without required approvals or knowledge by the Board. We have taken immediate corrective action and told Mr. Johnson to vacate the property immediately.

The Board is now reviewing this matter to confirm appropriate accountability and to reinforce our commitment to the highest standards of governance. We will work expeditiously and deliberately to determine our future course of action.  Throughout this process, our priority remains serving the residents of the City of Alexandria and advancing our housing mission.

Mayor Alyia Gaskins said that City Council is demanding accountability.

“The Council stands firm in our call for an investigation into the matter of the CEO’s housing,” Gaskins told ALXnow. “Our priority remains ensuring residents in need of publicly assisted housing have it and we will be demanding accountability.”

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says that it is a conflict of interest for a public housing agency (PHA) director to live on a property they manage. According to HUD:

The PHA may not enter into any contract or other arrangement in which any covered individual or immediate family member has a direct or indirect interest while the person is a covered individual and for one (1) year thereafter. Covered individuals include the following:

  • Current or former board member
  • Current or former PHA employee who makes policy or has influence on decisions with respect to these properties
  • Current or former public official, members of local governing body or State/local legislator or any public official who exercises functions or responsibilities with respect to the PHA properties/programs
  • Member of U.S. Congress (applies to the Housing Choice Voucher Program only)

Earlier Wednesday (Aug. 20), more than a dozen current and former ARHA tenants protested unfair treatment from their landlord at ARHA headquarters.

About the Author

  • Reporter James Cullum has spent nearly 20 years covering Northern Virginia. He began working with ALXnow in 2020, and has covered every story under the sun for the publication, from investigative stories to features and photo galleries. His work includes coverage of national and international situations, as well as from the White House, Capitol, Pentagon, Supreme Court and State Department. He's covered protests and riots throughout the U.S. (including the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol), in addition to earthquake-ridden Haiti, Western Sahara in North Africa and war-torn South Sudan. He has photographed presidents and other world leaders, celebrities and famous musicians, and excels under pressure.