IDC Mold Survery in NYCHA Houses
by Robert Press
The Independent Democratic Conference Headed by State Senator Jeff Klein who along with State Senator Marisol Alcantara unveiled a Report and Survey on Mold Senator Klein said that first it was Lead Paint, then it was No Heat or Hot Water, and now it is Mold that many NYCHA residents must endure.
Over 200 NYCHA residents citywide were surveyed, and according to the IDC survey 59% said they had mold in their NYCHA apartment. more than half of those residents said that it took more than two weeks for NYCHA to respond or NYCHA did not respond to the complaint. About a quarter of those surveyed said that it took over a month for NYCHA to remove the mold. The same amount of the people surveyed said that someone in their household suffers from Asthma. More than half of those surveyed said that they have leaky roof, windows, or pipes which cause water to leak into their NYCHA apartments.
Senator Klein and those NYCHA resident leaders such as Mr. Danny Barber (citywide NYCHA houses) and Ms. Nichole Johnson (Throggs Neck houses), complained that even after NYCHA does clean mold problems the mold returns shortly later because the NYCHA employees are just pouring bleach on the mold and wiping it dry. Senator Klein wants the people removing the mold in NYCHA Houses to be certified in mold removal, as he said NYCHA was left out of that process.
Senator Klein is calling for an independent NYCHA Monitor to be chosen by the tenant leaders of the NYCHA houses citywide, and Senator Klein also wants to institute the state’s Design and Build program for NYCHA to clean the mold. Design and Build was used on the new Mario Cuomo Bridge, to cut the timeline in half for quicker construction. By coincidence Mayor de Blasio has asked for the state to allow the Design and Build program to be used for the NYCHA boiler repair program at the start of the IDC press conference.
Mold begins as small gray spots which grow to become larger black spots that connect to each other. Mold is often found in bathrooms, and people can develop rashes from coming into contact with mold. Ms. Nichole Johnson challenged the mayor to spend two weeks in an apartment of her choosing to see the problems in some of the Throggs Neck Houses.
I asked Senator Klein, since you have tackled the lead paint, Heat, and now mold problems in NYCHA houses, is there an asbestos problem with all the falling ceilings and broken walls? Senator Klein responded that is probably next to be looked into.
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