Syracuse Post Standard Story

Contacts:

Tania Miller, The Enterprise Foundation, 585.454.2750
Rebecca Morley, National Center for Healthy Housing, 443.539.4159

NATIONAL CENTER FOR HEALTHY HOUSING AND
THE ENTERPRISE FOUNDATION RECEIVE OVER $930,000 FROM HUD TO PROTECT CHILDREN FROM LEAD POISONING

Pilot Program to be Developed in Rochester and Syracuse With Goal of National Replication in Mind

February 6, 2003 (Rochester, NY) – The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded a $930,789 grant to the National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH) to eliminate lead hazards in more than 25 home-based child care programs in Syracuse and Rochester, New York. Part of HUD's $6.5 million Operation LEAP (Lead Elimination Action Program), the grant will be leveraged with an additional $1 million in public and private funds to be raised by NCHH and its parent organization, The Enterprise Foundation.

Over the course of the next two years, the NCHH/Enterprise Foundation team will identify 25 single-family, owner-occupied homes in need of critical lead hazard control in low-income neighborhoods in Rochester and Syracuse. Each home will be the site of an existing child care business, run by the homeowner. The lead hazard control measures will include window replacement, paint stabilization, the creation of smooth and cleanable surfaces, treatment of friction and impact surfaces, and specialized cleaning. In addition to lead hazard control, the program also hopes to make such safety-related home improvements as: installing hardwire smoke detectors; upgrading electrical systems; remediating trip hazards; fixing stairs, handrails and improperly spaced spindles; placing/replacing fire extinguishers; upgrading heating systems; and fencing child play areas. And all of this will be done with minimal disruption to the lives of the host families and their livelihoods (i.e. the child care businesses) or to the parents whose children are cared for, while maintaining a safe, quality child care environment. With an average of four children being cared for in each home, the NCHH/Enterprise Foundation team estimates that at least 150 children will benefit from the hazard controls.

"I congratulate the National Center for Healthy Housing and The Enterprise Foundation for accepting this challenge from the federal government," said U. S. Representative James T. Walsh. "Lead poisoning is the number one environmental threat for children under six years of age. We have existing programs to detect and remediate lead problems from residences where children reside. But, this effort is unique in that it will target home-based child care programs so that many more children can be protected."

Although lead-based paint was outlawed in 1978, HUD estimates that there are more than 24 million dwelling units with lead hazards across the United States. The majority of those homes are in low-income communities. A 2001 report by the New York State Department of Health indicates that Monroe County and Onondaga had lead poisoning prevalence rates of 7.9 and 9.5 percent, in sharp contrast to the national average – which is 2.2%.

 NCHH and The Enterprise Foundation will execute the project in collaboration with two community-based partner organizations in each city: the Family Child Care Satellite Network Office and Neighborhood Housing Services of Rochester in Rochester, and the Child Care Council of Onondaga County and Home Headquarters in Syracuse.  "This will be an extremely challenging project," said Rebecca Morley, Executive Director of the National Center for Healthy Housing. "That is why we've assembled an experienced team with excellent credentials to bring it to fruition."  In addition to the work in these 25 homes, national safety experts will also educate child care providers, parents, and housing advocates on the details of lead and non-lead home safety.

 With this pilot program, the NCHH/Enterprise Foundation team plans to develop a reproducible framework which it can extend to other low-income communities across the country. "We're bound to learn a great deal by tackling such a intensive project," says Patricia Magnuson, Director of Child Care for The Enterprise Foundation, "and we intend to use that knowledge to develop a national model which can be replicated by similar partnerships in other cities." The Enterprise Foundation's national network consists of more than 2,200 nonprofit organizations in more than 800 cities throughout the United States.

One of the greatest obstacles to financial security for working families in low-income communities is the critical need for quality, affordable child care. In many low-income neighborhoods, the most common type of child care is home-based child care, where individuals are specially trained and regulated by the state to care for a limited number of children in their own homes. By providing quality care for children and freeing their parents' time to earn a living wage, home-based child care actually serves communities twice, by providing opportunities for viable, ongoing employment, and safe, reliable child care options for working parents.

A supporting organization of The Enterprise Foundation, the NATIONAL CENTER FOR HEALTHY HOUSING'S mission is to develop and promote practical methods to protect children from residential environmental hazards while preserving the supply of affordable housing. With financial support from federal agencies and private foundations, NCHH carries out research and evaluation studies on cost-effective approaches to assessing and controlling hazards in housing, provides technical assistance and training to local public and private health and housing agencies, and provides science-based policy advice to federal and state agencies.

THE ENTERPRISE FOUNDATION has been rebuilding America's low-income communities for 20 years by developing affordable housing, safer streets and access to jobs and child care. Launched by Jim and Patty Rouse in 1982, The Enterprise Foundation works with partners and a network of 2,200 community-based organizations in 800 U.S. locations. By leveraging investments and donations from nonprofit, private sector and government partners, The Enterprise Foundation has committed more than $4.1 billion in equity, loans and grants to build or renovate more than 135,000 homes.

Syracuse Post Standard Story