NORFOLK, VA – January 3, 2023 – We are proud to share that Lawson Chairman, Steve Lawson is the recipient of the 39th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Leader Award in the Housing category.
Since 1984, the Urban League of Hampton Roads Martin Luther King Jr. Community Leaders Awards are presented to individuals or groups who exemplify service, demonstrate the values modeled by Dr. King, and make significant contributions to the Hampton Roads community.
Lawson, a third-generation real estate builder and developer continues a family tradition of creating top-quality affordable housing in Virginia as Chairman of the real estate company his father, Bob Lawson launched in 1972.
“My father instilled in us a duty to make a positive impact in the community.”, said Lawson. “We’re incredibly fortunate to be able to do that through the creation of affordable housing throughout Virginia. Dad was among the first developers to recognize the power of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program, and we continue to build on his vision of creating affordable housing that rivals market-rate rentals in the communities we serve.”
The 39th Annual MLK Community Leaders Awards Program will be held virtually at 8:00am on Monday, January 16th at www.ulhr.org.

About Lawson
At Lawson, we understand that what we do – and how we do it – affects the everyday lives of people we care about. Since 1972 we’ve focused on positively impacting people, from team members and residents to investors and business partners. We manage and own nearly 6,000 apartment units and continue to grow with approximately 1,200 units in development. Our business model provides vertical integration of development, construction, property management and asset management, which enables our team of experts to add value at every stage for our partners. When you act with integrity, focus on quality and work to find creative solutions, great things are possible. It’s how we’ve done business at Lawson for over 50 years. For more information, please visit www.lawsoncompanies.com.
About the Urban League of Hampton Roads
The mission of the Urban League of Hampton Roads, Inc. (ULHR) is to enable African Americans and others to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power and civil rights. The ULHR implements its mission by providing services and programs in education, employment, health, and housing to Hampton Roads communities through direct services, advocacy, research, policy analysis, community mobilization and collaboration throughout communities. For more information, please visit www.ulhr.org.