To support student journalism and the content you love, become a member of The Daily Orange today.

Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh announced the city’s first Lead Paint Program Coordinator in a news release Tuesday.

Keenan Lewis, previously a Code Enforcement Officer, will oversee the city’s new Lead Paint Program that the 2023 fiscal year budget created. The budget also includes a provision to fund a program office manager and an ordinance enabling city inspectors to complete more lead inspections for rental properties.

“Keenan has worked hard to promote safety in Syracuse by collaborating with various City departments and community stakeholders to address barriers to constituents, working to ensure that residents have access to a healthy home,” Walsh said in the press release.

Studies, including ones from the CDC and Mayo Clinic, have found lead poisoning causes harm to children’s brains and nervous systems. It can also slow growth and development as well as cause learning disabilities, the studies said.

In his role, Lewis will lead community engagement with questions, policies and procedures related to lead paint abatement, according to the press release. Other responsibilities of the position include supervising inspections, reviewing lead paint cases and violation abatement schedules as well as investigating specific lead paint issues or violations.

The CDC identifies homes built before 1978 – the year the United States outlawed the use of lead paint in residential buildings – as a source of lead poisoning risk for children. Blood lead level testing of children within the county found that cases of lead poisoning increased during the pandemic.

In Syracuse, 10.5% of children tested for lead had “elevated” blood levels in 2021, according to county data. While a child only needs to have 5 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood to have what is considered an elevated level, .6% of those tested had at least quadruple the minimum level.

In Onondaga County, 5% of children tested had elevated levels of lead in 2021.

Megan Thompson | Digital Design Director

At a Monday news conference, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon announced the creation of the “Lead It Go” program, which he said will offer services to children identified to have elevated blood lead levels. This program will include therapy for social and emotional skill development.

“The minute we can identify (lead poisoning in children,) we will get these children enrolled in services,” he said.

Lewis is certified as an Environmental Protection Agency Risk Assessor and has completed the New York State Basic Code Enforcement Training Program, according to the press release.

“(Lewis’) desire to take on this role speaks to the passion he has for bettering the community, making him the right person to tackle lead in our city,” Walsh wrote in the press release.

Published on October 25, 2022 at 10:03 pm