Housing agency should have made lead paint, mold a top priority

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Housing agency should have made lead paint, mold a top priority

Saturday, October 08, 2005

Salem News - MA

http://www.ecnnews.com/cgi-bin/05/snstory.pl?-sec-

Editorial+1k589g0+fn-sedi1008-20051008-+page_0

The fact that state and local authorities have known about the lead

paint problem at Salem's Rainbow Terrace since 1998 — and failed to

do anything about it since — is nothing short of outrageous.

Salem Housing Authority Executive Director Carol MacGown says her

agency will comply with a Health Department order that the lead

paint found in four apartments at the subsidized housing complex be

removed within 120 days. But the fact is that this hazard — the

toxic paint was found to be " peeling off in ribbons " in one unit,

according to the inspector's report — should have been taken care of

a long time ago.

But until Health Agent Joanne issued her order, MacGown and

her board were apparently content to wait until 2008 when a $4-

million, state-approved rehabilitation of the 136-unit South Salem

housing complex is due to be completed. That project is also

supposed to take care of the mold problem that has been blamed for a

number of illnesses suffered by Rainbow Terrace residents.

" To have documentation dating back to 1998 and not having anything

done since then is ridiculous, " City Councilor Lucy Corchado rightly

noted this week.

Indeed, the deteriorating conditions at Rainbow Terrace should have

been the top priority for the housing agency. Instead it has seemed

more interested in getting money to add to its stock of elderly

housing, leaving these low-income families to suffer with the

abysmal conditions in their existing units.

MacGown and members of her board should have enlisted the help of

the city's elected officials and legislative delegation to pester

the state Department of Housing and Community Development until it

provided the money to fix the paint and water problems at Rainbow

Terrace as soon as they came to light. And they ought to be

embarrassed by the fact that it took an order by local health

authorities to start to make things right.

State Rep. Keenan has informed state officials that three years

is " far too long a wait " for needed repairs to be completed.

Meanwhile the SHA should prepare to spend more money in the short

term, since is recommending that all tenants request an

inspection of their premises — and that could very well yield more

emergency orders to get lead paint off walls and doorways at the

complex.

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