Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Ben Carson, was in Waco Wednesday at the Dewey Community Center to present a national HUD grant towards eliminating home health hazards like lead-based paint.
Secretary Carson officially delivered a $1.5 million dollar federal grant to Waco city leaders. It’s from the agency’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes. Waco city administrators will use the money to remove lead from homes built before 1978.
“Grants like this are an important step toward creating safer and healthier homes for our nation’s most vulnerable populations," Carson said.
Lead-based paint is particularly harmful for children 6 and younger.
Waco’s Housing Rehab coordinator, Marcus Davilla, says they plan to fix homes in North Waco first. He says the work will continue for three and half years and home owners and renters can apply for lead remediation.
The Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Program grant will be changed to the Lead is Preventable Program, or LIPP, by city leaders.
Waco is just one of Carson’s stops in Texas – the Housing Secretary is also visiting Dallas, Fort Worth and Austin.
