Lead Paint
The city of Syracuse, N.Y., is considering legislation that would continue to fight the lead poisoning crisis in the city, local radio station WRVO reports. The Department of Housing and Urban Development recently restored a $4.5 million grant to the city to address lead hazards in 230 housing units.
While Stephanie Pasquale, the Commission of Neighborhood and Business Development in Syracuse, said the grant will go a long way to abating lead paint hazards, the city is looking for further ways to address the issue. One proposed route is through legislation.
"Allowing for our code enforcement team to cite for lead base paint hazards. Right now, it's not in New York State building code," Pasquale said. "If this legislation passes, it would allow us to conduct just the right paint testing, especially in areas where we know there is a high risk.
We can provide resources for who qualified contractors are. There are trainings that we can hold, so you can actually do the work yourself. It's called RRP (Renovation, Repair, and Painting Program) training," Pasquale said.
Syracuse as a city struggles with lead paint issues because 90% of its housing stock was built before the federal government banned lead paint in 1978. Pasquale expects a proposal on legislation to appear before the city's Common Council sometime in 2019.
Read More
