N.J. scrapes up $2M for lead paint removal

VINELAND — A $2 million grant for the city is enough to cover lead-based paint removal costs for about 100 housing units here over the next two years, a state agency says.

There are strings on the aid, which the city learned last month it was getting. The money is only for work on housing built before 1978, and it is for properties with no more than four units.

A New Jersey law requires local governments to look for lead-based paint whenever they inspect rental properties built before 1978. The owner then must remove the paint or, if not, install a safeguard while leaving it in place.

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City Health Officer Robert Dickinson said removal work is expensive.

“And that’s kind of upsetting, especially if you don’t have much money,” Dickinson told the City Council at a recent meeting. “So, if I can say, ‘Hey. You got to do this much. We’ve got some free money for you,’ it makes it a lot more palatable to them and makes the city look better as well.”

Dickinson said the grant is targeted at low-income families who rent living quarters. “Low income” is defined as less than 85 percent of the median county income, with the size of the family being an income variable, he said.

“The recipients would be eligible for up to $13,000 per unit for lead remediation projects,” Dickinson said. “And abatement projects, it’s up to $25,000 per unit.”

When the city talks about lead remediation, it means lead is present in a home but no one is identified as poisoned. Lead abatement is a removal ordered after someone has been affected.

In November 2023, the Department of Community Affairs decided to recruit about 20 non-profit organizations and local governments to an effort to expand lead removal programs. Vineland Health Department was one of them.

Once the staffs of the agencies chosen had completed training, a $2 million grant was approved for each, said DCA spokeswoman Lisa Ryan. The end date for the removal programs is Dec. 31, 2026.

Dickinson said evaluations and clearance work may be able to be done by current staff at the Health Department and at the Department of Licenses & Inspections. Current staff also will pick up some administrative work, he said.

“But we’re going to have to hire a full-time lead construction manager for the two-year period, which we can use grant funding to hire that as well,” he said. “This is a great opportunity for L&I and the Health Department to work together.”

Joe Smith is a N.E. Philly native transplanted to South Jersey 36 years ago, keeping an eye now on government in South Jersey. He is a former editor and current senior staff writer for The Daily Journal in Vineland, Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, and the Burlington County Times.

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This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: N.J. scrapes up $2M for lead paint removal