Opinion: EBALDC ignores tenants requests for recent lead testing inspection reports

Opinion: EBALDC ignores tenants requests for recent lead testing inspection reports

By Lynda Carson - September 29, 2018

Oakland — In August of 2018, the City of Oakland did some lead testing in 4 rental units and the common areas of a low-income HUD subsidized 21 unit residential building called Effie’s House. Not satisfied with the lead testing results they obtained, during the week of August 21, 2018, the City of Oakland had Envirocheck Inc., to conduct a lead testing inspection in all of the 21 units, of the residential building known as Effie’s House. Apparently, the City of Oakland paid Envirocheck Inc., for the lead testing done at Effie’s House.

Effie’s House is owned and managed by the East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC), and its affiliate Ivy Hill Development Corporation. The building is filled with low-income renters including some elderly, disabled persons and families with children. EBALDC is one of Oakland’s largest nonprofit affordable housing developers.

The lead testing that occurred in the apartments of Effie’s House during August alarmed the tenants, and since then the tenants have been requesting a copy of the lead testing inspection reports for their apartments. The tenants have a right to know of any “hidden dangers” that may exist in their rental units, and a copy of the recent lead testing inspection reports for the apartments that they reside in may help to confirm if they are being exposed to “lead poisoning” from the lead-based paint coating the walls throughout the apartment building that was built around 1908.

So far EBALDC has been stonewalling the tenants, and the Property Supervisor of Effie’s House named Tammy Cotten, EBALDC’s director of property management Felicia Scruggs-Wright, and Ted Dang of Ivy Hill Development Corporation have all failed to reply, or even respond to the requests being made for a copy of the lead testing inspection reports.

Without receiving a response at all from the upper management of EBALDC regarding the lead testing inspection reports, the tenants do not know if EBALDC is trying to hide something from the tenants, or if the attitude of EBALDC’s management is that the tenants do not deserve a reply because they are "POOR PEOPLE" that can be ignored. Either way, the tenants have a need to have a copy of the lead testing inspection reports, no matter what EBALDC’s management may think of them.

Envirocheck Inc, also declines to give the renters at Effie’s House a copy of the results of the lead testing done in their apartments. In an August 29, 2018, email reply (further below) from John Meador, President and CEO of Envirocheck Inc., he declines to release a copy of the lead testing report that I requested, and suggests that all requests should be made to the landlord. The same landlord that has stonewalled the tenants so far, and has not bothered to respond at all to any requests being made for a copy of the lead testing inspection reports. See email below.

Hi Ms. Carson,

Enviorocheck is a third party independent testing company.  We can only release the results of our testing to our client directly.  

You may contact the California Department of Public Health CDPH and request information from them if they have any on the property in question.  

Otherwise please make any requests directly to your landlord.

Thank you, 
John Meador

According to public records with the Secretary of State, Envirocheck Inc. (C209070), has been incorporated since 7/21/1998, John A. Meador is listed as the Agent for Service of Process, and their license is currently active. Additional public records reveal that John A. Meador made a $250 political contribution to the Republican National Committee on 8/16/2004, in addition to another campaign contribution of $300 to the Republican National Committee.

Lead Poisoning In California:

According to court documents involving a law suit regarding lead-based paint: “[L]ead is a toxin and causes irreversible brain damage.” Childhood lead poisoning is “the number one environmental health problem for children” in California. “Childhood lead poisoning at the level at which it is occurring is definitely an epidemic in California.” “The most common source of lead exposure to children in California is lead-based paint and how it contributes to soil and dust contamination in and around housing.” Experts have reached a consensus “that lead-based paint is a predominant source of childhood lead exposure [in] pre-1978 housing.” Children in pre-1946 housing are subject to “three times the percentage of elevations in blood lead level” as those in post-1978 housing. Lead in homes accounts for at least 70 percent of all childhood lead poisonings. Lead paint is a major contributor to blood lead levels because the lead content of paint is high, while most other lead sources have only trace amounts. And the most common type of lead paint contains white lead carbonate, which is highly absorbable. Between 1929 and 1974, more than 75 percent of the white lead carbonate produced in this country was used in lead paint. Through the 1940s, lead paint contained as much as 50 percent lead.”

Reportedly, during May of 2018, there was a $60 million settlement involving 10 counties in California, including Alameda County and the City of Oakland. This settlement was only with NL Industries, formerly known as National Lead Co., which was one company out of three companies on the hook for cleaning up lead paint hazards in older residential buildings. The other companies are ConAgra Grocery Product, and Sherwin-Williams Company which both aggressively sold lead paint that was banned in 1978, but is still present in millions of residential buildings, and homes throughout California. An additional report reveals that lead paint is the primary source of lead poisoning for children residing in pre-1978 housing throughout California.

Instead of ignoring and stonewalling the concerned tenants at Effie’s House that have reasonably requested a copy of the lead testing inspection reports of Envirocheck Inc., it would be very helpful if EBALDC respected the tenants enough to release the results of the lead testing inspection reports from August of 2018. The tenants have the right to have a copy of the lead testing reports, no matter what some of the employees of EBALDC may believe.

Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com

Note: Lynda Carson is a resident of Effie’s House.

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