Press Coverage
From local communities to national coverage — the story is getting out. See what people are saying about Fading West.
PBS Feature: Building the affordable housing solution
Affordable housing doesn't fix itself. Fading West Chief Business Development Officer, Eric Schaefer sat down with PBS to talk about what it actually takes to close the gap — starting with a 22-acre plot next to a Buena Vista high school, a zoning fight, a shortage of local tradespeople, and a decision to build a modular factory from scratch rather than wait for the system to catch up.
From Colorado to Maui, this is the story behind the build.
NEW YORK TIMES
Why Do We Build Houses in the Same Way That We Did 125 Years Ago?
The tantalizing potential of factory-built housing, also known as modular housing, continues to attract investors and entrepreneurs, including a start-up called Fading West that opened a factory in 2021 in the Colorado mountain town of Buena Vista.
TIME100 Most Influential Companies of 2022
America's housing inventory has hit its lowest level in 20 years — and the country is short nearly 7 million units. Entrepreneur Charlie Chupp's answer is Fading West, a factory-built housing firm delivering modular homes 95% complete and at least 25% more affordable than comparable market-rate homes.
Articles &
News Features
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![Group of people participating in a Fading West groundbreaking workforce housing project ceremony, digging into the dirt with shovels, with mountains in the background.]()
Fading West and Town of Buena Vista Break Ground on Midland Apartments AKA Carbonate Street
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![Fading West Modular Housing Construction site for a multi-family modular townhome project featuring a modular home being lifted by a crane, with workers and construction equipment around.]()
Wyoming Boomtown: With 12,000 Workers Expected, Kemmerer Looks To Modular Housing
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![Group of six people at a groundbreaking workforce housing modular housing event, holding shovels in front of dirt with mountains in the background and a banner reading 'Fading West' in the distance.]()
Town of BV, Fading West, partners break ground on Carbonate Street
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![A worker inspects the framing of a modular home at the Fading West factory in Buena Vista, Colo., on Feb. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Thomas Peipert)]()
3D printed and factory-built homes could help tackle housing crisis
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![Modular Housing Fading West Construction site with workers and officials wearing safety vests and helmets, new houses being built in the background, snowy hills, and clear blue sky.]()
Colorado’s governor tours Habitat for Humanity’s new development in Eagle
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![Architectural elevation drawings by Fading West featuring a multi-story modular residential building with blue windows, orange and gray facade, showing west, east, and top views.]()
Sawtooth II housing project finalized
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![Sketch of a Fading West modular residential development plan with green spaces, parking, and labeled streets.]()
Carbonate Street to break ground April 1
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![Buena Vista Main street in a snowy town with brick buildings and a mountainous backdrop.]()
Resort Towns Need to Get Serious About Affordable Housing
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![Children and two dogs playing on a grassy lawn in a residential neighborhood with modern houses in the background.]()
Polis Administration Announces Modular Housing Incentives
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![A Fading West construction worker wearing a yellow safety vest, hard hat, and glasses, smiling and holding a power drill inside a wooden framed structure under construction.]()
Simplifying Manufacturing with Air Casters
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![Side view of Fading West modern modular townhouses with balconies, gabled roofs, and a cloudy sky in the background.]()
Village at Spruce Hill homes hit the market
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![A Fading West Modular construction worker wearing a safety vest and hard hat carrying a box, standing in the doorway of a new, unfinished house under construction.]()
A modular home community near Telluride may become a national model.
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![Fading West workforce housing groundbreaking ceremony in Moffat County, Colorado — large group in safety helmets with shovels, excavator, and Craig Chamber of Commerce sign in background]()
Craig Housing Authority breaks ground on townhomes
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![a group of people holding shovels at a Fading West workforce housing groundbreaking ceremony in Colorado]()
Habitat for Humanity Vail Valley breaks ground on 16-unit project in Eagle
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![Colorful modern modular housing project in Colorado with snow-capped mountains in the background and a cloudy sky.]()
This Colorado mountain town is producing the future of workforce housing
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![Modern house under construction with a crane lifting a wall section, large windows, and a construction ladder.]()
Modular Construction Could Ease Colorado’s Housing Affordability Crisis
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![Interior of the Fading West Modular Factory warehouse with wooden framework for building structures, a staircase, and overhead crane system.]()
Factory in Buena Vista rolling affordable homes off an assembly line
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![A man in a suit speaking at a podium with a microphone, with national flags and elegant lighting in the background. Eric Schaeffer of Fading West speaks before Congress about affordable housing crisis.]()
Gov. Jared Polis touts factory-built homes as part of affordable housing solution
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![Three men standing on a back porch of a Fading West single-family modular house, engaged in conversation, with a neighborhood and mountains visible in the background.]()
To fill hundreds of empty snowplow seats, CDOT plans to offer state-owned housing to drivers
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![Aerial view of a Fading West modular housing multi-family construction site in a residential neighborhood with houses, trees, and roads, showing land being cleared and prepared for building.]()
New Pinion Park housing project already attracting qualified buyers Item
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![Cover of a report titled 'TIME 100 Most Influential Companies 2022' with the logo of Fading West at the bottom and a red background.]()
Fading West Development building on a budget
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![Group of construction workers and professionals wearing safety vests and hard hats in an indoor construction site, discussing near a partially built wooden structure at the Fading West modular housing factory in Buena Vista, CO]()
Solving the affordable housing crisis in Colorado and beyond.
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![Image of the Fading West industrial warehouse building in Buena Vista, CO with snow patches on the ground, mountains in the background at sunset.]()
“The future of housing” takes shape at Buena Vista factory
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![Fading West CDOT workforce housing project in Fairplay, Colorado — colorful modern single family modular homes with front porches on a sunny day.]()
Modular housing is getting a second look as Colorado confronts a lack of affordable homes
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![Fading West Construction site with a large gray warehouse, several parked vehicles, a person walking, and snow-capped mountains in the background under a blue sky.]()
Fading West Plant Offers Housing Hope for a County in Desperate Need of Workforce Housing
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![Two houses under construction with wooden balconies, surrounded by construction debris and equipment, under a partly cloudy sky.]()
To help fill the affordable housing gap, a Buena Vista project is creating inventory — one giant box at a time
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![A group of people are gathered outdoors in a dry, grassy area with mountains in the background. They are listening to a man in black giving a presentation or speech. A yellow construction vehicle is partially visible on the right side of the image.]()
Fading West Development Addressing Housing Crisis in Buena Vista and Beyond
But wait… there’s more!
Proco360 Podcast: Charlie Chupp talks about Building Houses Like Cars
2026
PBS Feaure: RETHINKING AFFORDABLE HOUSING with Eric Schaefer
CBS ArticlE: A Unique Approach to Building Workforce Housing
2023
dave cooper live: Manufacturing a Scalable Solution to Meet Housing Demand
2022
Art of construction podcast: how lean manufacturing is solving the housing crisis
2022
Denver 7 feature: modular housing as a solution to mountain town housing
2021
Tri-state generation: Rethinking the American Dream in Colorado’s Mountain Towns
2023
2021