Mayor Gary McCarthy today thanked Schenectady’s Congressional Delegation Senators Schumer, Gillibrand and Congressman Tonko for their leadership in the City of Schenectady’s $3,190,570 Lead Safe Housing Program grant. The Lead Safe Housing Program competitive grant was awarded to the City of Schenectady from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and will make 225 housing units lead safe over the next three years. “Protecting and improving the health and safety of our community, particularly the most vulnerable, is critically important”, said Mayor Gary McCarthy. “This innovative partnership between the City and the County has already assisted over a hundred Schenectady families and this new award will allow this great work to continue. Thank you to our outstanding Congressional delegation for their great support in this effort.” “The awarding of this grant is evidence that our partnership with the City of Schenectady is working,” said Anthony Jasenski, Chair of the Schenectady County Legislature. “The preventative measures and lead clean-up that has occurred through this partnership is so important for the safety of our community. We are very excited to continue working with the City to reach out to even more Schenectady families.” Approximately 90% of City homes were built prior to 1978 and are more likely to contain lead-based paint. Long-term exposure to lead can cause serious health problems, particularly in young children. The City and the County of Schenectady’s Public Health Services partner in this program to reduce the hazards of lead poisoning especially for small children and pregnant women who live in high risk homes. Public Health administers the grant for the City and integrates it with other lead poisoning prevention programs offered by the County. The County works with the City to integrate programs to strive for a more comprehensive approach to protecting the health and safety of residents. Under the Lead Safe Housing Program, occupants and landlords may apply to have their housing units assessed for lead risk. If hazards are present and the landlord or the tenants meet the qualifying factors including federal income limits, owners are eligible to receive a grant for the full amount of the cost of the rehabilitation work needed to make the home lead safe.
Posted on: Tue, 30 Sep 2014 20:34:32 +0000
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