Families may be eligible to participate in Harrisburg’s Lead Safe Program, which has used millions of dollars in federal grant money to help thousands of people in the city.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Matt Maisel
717-678-5166
March 10, 2022
More than 100 families in Harrisburg have gotten rid of, or are in the process of eliminating, dangerous lead from their homes since October.
The Lead Safe Program offers assistance to low and moderate-income families throughout the city to help make their homes lead-safe for children. Since October 1, 80 Harrisburg families have chosen to eradicate harmful lead hazards, with another 28 currently in the process.
City of Harrisburg officials hope to help 230 families by the end of September.
“It’s great to see so many homes are done and families have been helped,” said Dennise Hill, Director for the Department of Business and Housing Development (DBHD). “We’re so close to hitting that [230 family] target. We want more people to know about the program.”
Families can apply online through the City of Harrisburg’s website and following this link for English: https://laserfiche.harrisburgpa.gov/Forms/LHRD-Program
Haga click en el enlace para español: http://s3.amazonaws.com/harrisburgpa.gov/wp-content/uploads/20201112121531/
Interested families can also email Susan Brown Wilson, Client Logistics Grant Manager for DBHD, at [email protected], or call (717) 255-6412.
The Lead Safe Program is made possible through the city’s Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration grant (LHRD), funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Tenants and homeowners in Harrisburg are eligible to participate in the lead-elimination program if they fall under the income limits listed below.
If a family qualifies and signs up, a team of dedicated lead abatement professionals will come to your home and work to remove lead-based paint hazards. The LHRD program is not designed to do home rehabilitation. Some funding may be available for minor home improvements and repair work after the lead is removed.
The City of Harrisburg is also excited to engage its partnership with the Hamilton Health Center, located at 110 South 17th Street. When children under six years old, or those pregnant, are feeling sick, they can come to the health center and have blood work done. If their blood shows elevated levels of lead present, health professionals will inform parents or guardians of the Lead Safe Program, and instruct them on the next steps to get the lead removed from their homes.
“This just further shows how effective communication within the community can work towards a common goal to positive affect the people of Harrisburg,” Hill said.
The Lead Safe Program has made over 800 homes lead-safe since 1995. Only homes built before 1978, when lead-based paint was outlawed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, are eligible to participate.
For more information or to schedule a story, contact Matt Maisel, Director of Communications for the City of Harrisburg, at (717) 678-5166 or [email protected].
