Syracuse Mayor Signs Green & Healthy Homes Initiative Compact for the Greater Syracuse Area
Syracuse, NY – Today, Mayor Stephanie Miner and Onondaga County representatives signed a compact supporting efforts to make the Greater Syracuse area a leader in healthy homes. The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) Greater Syracuse is a comprehensive approach to align health, safety, lead hazard reduction, energy efficiency and weatherization interventions in low to moderate income homes.
The compact signing actively engages local and state government, housing, foundation and other partners that are already conducting work related to green and healthy homes interventions. GHHI Greater Syracuse works collaboratively to improve services to low and moderate income families to improve housing and stabilize communities.
“GHHI Greater Syracuse brings together committed partners to align resources that produce green, healthy and safe homes,” said Mayor Stephanie Miner. “GHHI Greater Syracuse will deliver comprehensive housing interventions to increase opportunities for low to moderate income residents.”
“GHHI Greater Syracuse provides a single open doorway to families to get home improvements done that will make their lives healthier and safer, and will save the Syracuse community time and resources while increasing efficiencies,” said County Executive Joanne M. Mahoney.
Compact signatories include the City of Syracuse, Onondaga County, Syracuse Neighborhood and Business Development, Onondaga County Office of Community Development, Onondaga County Health Department, Central New York Community Foundation, Health Foundation for Western & Central New York, PEACE, Home HeadQuarters, CNY Fair Housing, and the Green & Healthy Homes Initiative.
GHHI is a national non-profit dedicated to breaking the link between unhealthy housing and unhealthy families. The GHHI Healthy Homes model for integrating home health, energy efficiency and weatherization home interventions is the national holistic model for comprehensive interventions that align partners with other housing, energy and health intervention providers in their area. GHHI has produced 6,000 GHHI housing units nationwide. There are 25 GHHI sites nationally.
In 2015, New York State Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman awarded Home HeadQuarters $1 million to pursue the national GHHI designation and provide funding for more than 200 homes that will be undertaken in this new home improvement coupled with health intervention model. These funds will be leveraged with other program funding to improve the energy efficiency of homes while also addressing home-based environmental health hazards that cause asthma episodes, lead poisoning and household injury.
Most recently, on June 13th Onondaga County was awarded a $3.4 million dollar grant from the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development to eliminate lead paint and other health hazards in 195 low-income housing units, and to perform healthy homes interventions in 100 units.
“Aging homes, poverty and unemployment force too many low and moderate income families to live in houses that are unsafe, unhealthy and bad for the environment,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative Greater Syracuse will attract additional resources to help our most vulnerable residents to improve the health, safety and energy efficiency of their homes.”
“The comprehensive GHHI model leads to healthier outcomes that allows kids to come to school ready to learn, helps parents get to work, and ultimately helps stabilize communities,” said Ruth Ann Norton, President and CEO of GHHI. “Through this coordinated partnership and government innovation, we can have a tremendous impact.”
Community stakeholders, under the direction, organization and funding of the Central New York Community Foundation and with additional support and guidance from the Health Foundation of Western and Central New York, began meeting around promoting a new model of assessing and intervening in homes from a holistic approach. Every GHHI Greater Syracuse approved applicant will receive a comprehensive health and housing assessment. The partners with GHHI Greater Syracuse will identify resources available specific to the home and applicant.
“Addressing the health, safety and efficiency issues faced by low-income homeowners will be a game-changer for many families in Syracuse,” said Peter Dunn, Central New York Community Foundation President and CEO. “That is why the Community Foundation worked tirelessly alongside Home HeadQuarters and numerous community partners to help bring Green & Healthy Homes Greater Syracuse to fruition. We look forward to witnessing the benefits of healthier and safer Syracuse families as an outcome of this fantastic collaborative effort to improve systems of service for City residents.”
“GHHI Greater Syracuse is a program that values collaboration and creative problem solving,” says said Kerry Quaglia, Executive Director of Home HeadQuarters. “Collectively, we will improve not only the housing stock, but also improve the wellness of the occupants in the home.”
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Home HeadQuarters is committed to creating housing and related opportunities and services in Central and Upstate NY that improve the lives of underserved people and revitalize the communities in which they live. Founded in 1996, Home HeadQuarters was established to address the declining homeownership rates throughout the city. The agency offers comprehensive homebuyer education, offers a variety of home improvement products and conducts real estate development activities throughout the City of Syracuse.
The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative, formerly the Coalition to End Childhood Lead Poisoning, replaces stand-alone programs with a comprehensive strategy to improve health, economic and social outcomes for children, families and seniors through a proven integrated housing intervention framework.
With support from HUD, DOE, CDC, the Council on Foundations, and numerous philanthropic partners, GHHI now serves as the national model for green and healthy homes interventions. Currently, there are 25 GHHI sites nationally: Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Buffalo, Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Dubuque, Flint, Jackson, Lansing, Lewiston Auburn, Marin County, Memphis, New Haven, Newark, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Providence, Salt Lake, San Antonio, Springfield, Staten Island and Greater Syracuse. Learn more at www.ghhi.org and follow us @HealthyHousing.