Velázquez, Gillibrand demand answers from NYCHA over lead paint

U.S. Rep. Nydia Velazquéz, who represents parts of Queens, joined Sen. Kirtsen Gillibrand on a letter to NYCHA about new lead paint information. AP Photo

By Rachel Vick

U.S. Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez and U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand are the latest elected officials to demand answers from NYCHA over disturbing new lead paint statistics. 

The pair of lawmakers sent a letter to the head of the public housing agency to express their concern for tenants’ health following new lead exposure numbers. They said NYCHA has been a bastion of “operational mismanagement and neglect” and questioned how the agency has used federal COVID funding to address health issues.

“New Yorkers deserve to know how NYCHA has used the funding it received through the CARES Act to keep residents safe and healthy throughout this pandemic,” Gillibrand said. “Every single New Yorker, no matter their income or race, deserves to live in safe, lead-free homes with proper ventilation.“ 

A recent report issued by NYCHA’s federal monitor Bart Schwartz said 6,000 additional apartments with children under six have been added to the list of units with potential lead paint. 

In April of 2019, the city announced that it would begin testing all 134,000 NYCHA apartments built before lead paint was banned, prioritizing the units with young children. By July, none of the 8,052 units tested were in Queens, despite the borough having the most units with children.

There are now at least 9,000 NYCHA units inhabited by children under six containing lead, according to the report, a discovery that the Velazquéz and Gillibrand letter called “shocking and disappointing.” 

The federal government allocated $150 million in COVID relief to NYCHA through the CARES Act in April to enable the housing agency to carry out coronavirus response measures and ensure the safety of residents, many of whom are put at risk by factors like “lead, mold, poor ventilation, leaks” that make their homes less of a refuge from COVID and the imminent cold weather,” the two lawmakers wrote.

They urged NYCHA to provide a detailed explanation of their use of relief funds and plans to meet ventilation guidelines outlined by the Center for Disease Control.

“Given the clear scientific correlation between poor housing conditions and respiratory illness, it is incumbent upon NYCHA to provide a clear and transparent plan to ensure residents remain safe and public health protocols are followed,” Velázquez said.

A NYCHA spokesperson told the Eagle that Schwartz’s report gave “an unfortunate and flawed picture of the proactive efforts underway to transform the Authority’s approach to lead-based paint.”

“NYCHA has always intended to identify the full scope of the children under 6 apartments and the increase in the number is the result of coordinated efforts to contact families and identify the at risk kids,” they said, criticizing the incomplete picture presented. “Since March, NYCHA has provided bi-weekly updates and had weekly, or more frequent, meetings with elected officials on all of the issues raised in the letter. The letter received makes no mention of these updates.”