Happy Thanksgiving from GCLAC Co-Chair Roulet Proof Why GCLAC2010 Black Hitlers Worst Genocide EVER Of Blacks Opinion We are a community united against lead poisoning. Our mission continues: Mitchell Balk and Sharon Sobol Jordan

By Norm Roulet, 27 November, 2024
GCLAC Black Hitlers
Black HitlersSwastika Boys

Why GCLAC2010 Black Hitlers Worst Genocide EVER Of Blacks Opinion We are a community united against lead poisoning. Our mission continues: Mitchell Balk and Sharon Sobol Jordan

CLEVELAND -- The Lead Safe Cleveland Coalition stands united against Cleveland’s lead poisoning crisis, which endangers the health and future of our children. The coalition has brought together leaders across public, private, and community sectors, committed to collaboration and innovation to tackle this deeply entrenched issue.

While Cleveland’s lead-safe ordinance was passed in 2019 to address lead-paint hazards in the city’s older housing stock, implementation did not begin until 2021. Cities like Rochester, New York, needed over a decade to see meaningful reductions in lead exposure, and Cleveland will need to be just as persistent.

Despite early challenges like the pandemic and workforce shortages, over 38,000 units have been certified lead-safe by the city of Cleveland since the ordinance was passed, of an estimated 90,000 rental units. To meet the urgent need for lead-safe housing, the coalition has increased financial incentives, expanded eligibility criteria, simplified application processes, and added new administrators to boost capacity.

The coalition, with its 500-member network, supports implementation of the city’s ordinance and provides resources to property owners and tenants through the Lead Safe Resource Center and Home Fund, in collaboration with the city. We have received approximately $32 million of the $92.8 million committed to support our work and deployed $14 million to date.

This has facilitated over 4,300 incentives and over 300 grants for property owners, helped train over 750 lead workers, and established a Resource Center that fielded over 20,600 calls.

Recent data, covering just two years of progress, highlight remaining challenges, including children living in certified properties who still had elevated blood-lead tests. It is premature to link these cases directly to failures in lead-safe methods when multiple factors could be at play.

This new information is driving all partners to tighten and improve our approach. Reversing decades of lead exposure will take time, rigorous enforcement, and sustained funding.

Success will rely on a well-coordinated strategy, with each key player in the fight bringing essential expertise and resources.

Joining us with shared goals and distinct roles in this critical mission:

● The Cleveland Department of Public Health monitors and prevents lead poisoning, particularly in children, conducts environmental assessments, identifies lead sources, educates the public, and tracks exposure data.

● The Cleveland Department of Building and Housing issues Lead Safe Certifications, processes applications, inspects properties, and ensures compliance to protect residents’ health.

● The Cleveland Department of Community Development administers U.S. Housing and Urban Development lead-abatement grants to provide property owners with resources needed to address lead hazards.

Mitchell Balk is president of the Mt. Sinai Health Foundation.Courtesy of Mitchell Balk

Based on the recent data, the city of Cleveland is now contemplating amendments to the lead-safe ordinance, to continue lead-safe certification with an emphasis on abatement.

The evidence we have does not show that a lead-safe approach is ineffective, only that we need to work harder to protect children. Strategies such as interim controls, abatement, increased enforcement, and enhanced quality control will serve to strengthen the approach to decreasing child lead exposure.

Sharon Sobol Jordan, president and CEO of United Way of Greater Cleveland.

Lead-safe certification was selected as the initial approach because it offered a more immediate intervention while capacity for more extensive abatement efforts was gradually built. With 90% of Cleveland’s housing stock predating the 1978 lead paint ban, widespread abatement was financially unfeasible in the short term.

In partnership with Cleveland property owners, landlords, and the city, we support Mayor Justin Bibb’s call to action and stand ready to adapt as needed. This citywide crisis demands shared responsibility and partnership across sectors. We welcome ongoing dialogue to align and refine efforts and build a safer, healthier Cleveland. Our mission remains clear — until no child is at risk, we are not done.

Mitchell Balk is president of the Mt. Sinai Health Foundation. Sharon Sobol Jordan is president of the United Way of Greater Cleveland. Balk and Jordan are members of the Lead Safe Cleveland Coalition Executive Committee.

https://www.cleveland.com/opinion/2024/11/we-are-a-community-united-against-lead-poisoning-our-mission-continues-mitchell-balk-and-sharon-sobol-jordan.html

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Norm Roulet

2 hours 54 min ago

GCLAC & Eradicating Lead Poisoning in Greater Cleveland

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Mon, 04/03/2006 - 01:54.

http://realneo.us/gclac-eradicating-lead-poisoning-in-greater-cleveland

Greater Cleveland has a higher percentage of elevated blood level children than the national average, and many neighborhoods have significant lead poison problems. This book shares insight generated in the effort to eradicate lead poisoning in NEO, including initiative of the Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council... GCLAC.

â€č Viewing Party- Citizen Hauser at A.J. Rocco'supGreater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council moves forward eradicating lead poisoning in NEO â€ș

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Some reading on NEO Lead Poisoning, for the Media...

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Fri, 01/28/2011 - 01:45.

Some reading on NEO Lead Poisoning, for the Media...

Disrupt IT

LIARS

Submitted by lmcshane on Fri, 01/14/2022 - 12:10.

Image removed.Liars

JUST as I was encouraged in 2004 (by my library employer) to join REALNEO and the Cuyahoga County Early Literacy task force - Norm Roulet BELIEVED NEO would address lead poisoning in kids.  These scumcrats don't care about kids. They never did. http://realneo.us/gclac-eradicating-lead-poisoning-in-greater-cleveland 2006!!!!  Empty promises... dead kids.

Norm Roulet

2 hours 49 min ago

The biggest economic development story in NEO this year: East Cleveland litigating over lead

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Fri, 09/29/2006 - 17:00.

If you read REALNEO, you know the huge burden of lead poisoning on our region's children and adults, the community's quality of life, and our education system and economy, and you know that, since May, East Cleveland Mayor Eric Brewer has been planning to work with Motley Rice to bring litigation over lead poisoning to Ohio courts. Today, the Plain Dealer published word the litigation is finally here, as East Cleveland is expected to file suit in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court over the public nuisance lead causes in their community, as has been done in 27 other states to date. East Cleveland is the leader bringing such litigation to our state, and it appears other cities and the state of Ohio are preparing to follow suit. I take great pride that I helped advance this development, and I look forward to helping East Cleveland, NEO and all Ohioans win, as a result.

This will be a tough battle - Brewer is truly brave for taking this on, here in lead and litigation central, NEO. The paint industry is being defended in other states and likely here by Cleveland-based legal powerhouse Jones Day, and they have strong support from local media, industry and government... they employ lots of rich and regular people in NEO, have a foundation, and you can be sure all those rich lawyers have donated tons of money to all the judges and politicians around the county, state, country and world. Worse, one of the primary defendants is Cleveland based Sherwin Williams, and they have immense clout here, especially with the media, which earns $1,000,000s a year from their advertising. It is for these reasons the lead crisis gets very little media attention here, which is so critical to raising community awareness that will lead to eliminating the problem. As an excellent recent example of the positive spin the Plain Dealer gives Jones Day under the most grotesque circumstances, look at how they promote Jones Day cancer champion, litigator Grossman, defending tobacco companies against a class action law suit over "light" cigarettes, just this week.

Now that Mayor Brewer of East Cleveland has brought litigation over lead to our community, the media may still try to paint a pretty picture of Jones Day and Sherwin Williams, but they won't be able to ignore the crisis like they have up until now. Just this expansion of community awareness and dialog will help save 1,000s of children from certain lead poisoning, which will have long term positive benefits for our ability to deliver quality educations to 10,000s of school children, and improve our economy over time. Every citizen of NEO and Ohio owe Mayor Brewer a hearty thank you. Here's the luke-warm launch of the PD media cover-up of the issue... watch this issue and the media like a hawk!

Cities turn to courts for lead paint resolution
Friday, September 29, 2006 - Peter Krouse, Plain Dealer Reporter

Cities across the state are considering litigation against the lead pigment industry, including Sherwin-Williams Co. of Cleveland.

And the city of East Cleveland is expected to file suit in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court this morning over the presence of lead pigment in homes and buildings, said Michael O'Shea, who is defending the city on a contingency basis along with the powerful Motley Rice law firm.

Motley Rice represents the state of Rhode Island, which won a landmark lead paint verdict against Sherwin-Williams, Millennium Holdings LLC and N.L. Industries Inc. earlier this year. The jury in that case agreed with the state that lead paint is a public nuisance and that the three companies should be required to remedy the situation.

East Cleveland, which according to O'Shea has the highest percentage of lead-poisoned children in the state, will employ a similar legal strategy, he said. "It's little kids who are presumed to be negligent-free under the law who are victims of this," O'Shea said.

At least three other Ohio cities are considering similar actions. The Columbus city attorney recently hired a litigation group, with Motley Rice taking the lead.

Patricia Delaney, a Columbus assistant city attorney, said a decision to file suit has not been made, but added, "I would say it's a strong possibility."

Max Rothal, law director in Akron, said he should make a decision on a lead paint suit next week. He declined to comment further. And in Toledo, Law Director John Madigan said he's likely to file a suit by the end of next week. He said attorneys from Motley Rice and other firms are drawing up a complaint that he will review.

It's not known how many others may jump into the fray. A spokeswoman for Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson said the city won't comment on potential litigation. A spokesman for Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro said the office is assessing its options.

The use of lead pigment in paint began to decline in the 1930s, but it wasn't outlawed for use in residential homes in the United States until 1978. Children who ingest paint chips or dust containing lead can suffer a variety of ailments.

In Rhode Island, as many as 240,000 homes are believed to have lead paint in them. The judge in the Rhode Island case has not decided on a remedy. It's believed cleanup costs could exceed $1 billion. The defendants have asked the judge to dismiss the verdict, but he has yet to make a ruling. They have said they will appeal to the Rhode Island Supreme Court if necessary. 
Sherwin-Williams spokesman Bob Wells declined to comment on the potential suits. The company has vigorously fought previous suits and blames landlords for not properly maintaining their property.

O'Shea said it will take a lot more money to remove lead pigment from East Cleveland than the federal government can provide.

Lead paint litigation has been ongoing in a number of states, but the Rhode Island verdict was the first to go against the industry.

A spokeswoman for the likely defendants in Ohio said Thursday that lawsuits "against companies that long ago made lead pigment or paint are misdirected, ill-advised and counterproductive."

The final resolution of the Rhode Island case is expected to provide some precedent for similar lawsuits in Ohio. Spencer Neth, a law professor at Case Western Reserve University, said the lead defendants in Rhode Island will prevail on appeal because the judge did not apply prior law that requires responsible parties to be directly linked to the harm done to the plaintiff.

Instead, the judge allowed the responsibility to be shared by several companies who marketed paint in the state.

Calls to Motley Rice were not returned.

A contract signed Tuesday between the Columbus city attorney and its lead litigation group, which includes Motley Rice and five other firms, would compensate the group on a contingency basis. The group would get one-third of any financial award, after legal costs are subtracted, if the case goes to trial. It would receive 25 percent of any settlement, again after legal costs are subtracted, reached before trial.

Delaney said the proposal to hire Motley Rice was brought to the Columbus city attorney by John Kennedy, a former Columbus councilman whose law firm, Crabbe Brown & James, is part of lead litigation group, and by Andrew Lipton, a Toledo attorney who also is part of the group.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

pkrouse [at] plaind [dot] com, 216-999-4834

â€č Did Henry Sherwin Intend to Cover The Earth With Lead?upAkron joins East Cleveland and Toledo in litigating over lead - Cincy and Columbus expected to follow â€ș

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Yes, East Cleveland has filed against Sherwin Williams

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sat, 09/30/2006 - 22:40.

In the PD today they confirmed East Cleveland did file suit against Sherwin Williams and other paint companies. Major Brewer is a hero! From the PD Business Diary:

LEAD PAINT SUITS - East Cleveland sues paint makers

The city of East Cleveland filed suit against Sherwin-Williams Co. of Cleveland and at least eight other lead paint companies in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court on Friday morning over the presence of lead pigment in homes and buildings. Akron, Columbus and Toledo are considering similar legal action. Michael O'Shea will represent East Cleveland along with the Motley Rice law firm, which helped the state of Rhode Island win a landmark lead paint verdict earlier this year against Sherwin-Williams and two of the companies named in East Cleveland's suit - Millennium Holdings LLC and N.L. Industries Inc.

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Suits Allege Lead Manufacturers Created a Public Nuisance

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Thu, 11/16/2006 - 18:16.

It is worth reading more about this litigation - in this case by one of the attorneys who filed the Ohio cases for East Cleveland and Toledo:

Suits Filed on Behalf of Several Ohio Cities Allege Lead Manufacturers Created a Public Nuisance

WAYNE, NJ, (September 29, 2006) – Jon L. Gelman, a prominent attorney representing plaintiffs as a result of toxic exposures, along with Motley Rice LLC, one of the nation's largest plaintiffs' litigation firms, today announced that it has filed two lawsuits against members of the lead paint industry on behalf East Cleveland, Ohio and Toledo, Ohio. The suits allege that lead pigment manufacturers, including Atlantic Ritchfield, Sherwin Williams, Millennium Holdings, DuPont, ConAgra, and others, helped to create an environmental hazard and significant public health crisis in the state of Ohio by manufacturing, distributing and promoting lead-based paint products long after they were aware of the significant health dangers associated with these products.

Unfortunately, almost thirty years after the manufacturers were forced by the federal government to stop selling their toxic lead pigment, scores of Ohio citizens continue to be poisoned each year by lead paint that is still present in public and private buildings. This litigation is an effort by the individual cities to ensure the lead pigment manufacturers take responsibility for the pervasive health hazard they have created for the Ohio public, including its children, parents, homeowners, landlords and taxpayers.

According to Jack McConnell, attorney and member at Motley Rice LLC, "We are going to court to hold companies accountable for selling a product they knew would hurt kids. Lead pigment companies have known since the early 1900s that lead in paint hurts kids yet they sold and marketed it for years anyway. Instead of accepting responsibility, they have left children and homeowners, citizens of Ohio, to fend for themselves. It is time that these Defendants become part of the solution instead of part of the problem."

This lawsuit follows on the heels of the historic defeat of the lead industry after trial in Rhode Island earlier this year. In that case, the a jury of Rhode Islanders found that some members of the lead pigment industry created a public nuisance in Rhode Island and ordered the defendants to abate that nuisance. The State of Rhode Island, represented throughout litigation and at trial by Motley Rice, was the first State in the nation to force these defendants to accept responsibility for their actions. Gelman represents several public entities in claims against the lead industry in New Jersey. http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/mass-tort/leadpaint/a1946-02.pdf

Jon L. Gelman, who practices in Wayne, NJ, wrote Workers’ Compensation Law (West Group 2003), is a contributing member/author of the advisory board of Modern Workers Compensation (West Group 2001) & is a former national Vice-President of the Workplace Injury Litigation Group. Jon L. Gelman, 1450 Valley Road, 1st Floor, P.O. Box 934, Wayne, NJ 07474-0934, Voice: 973.696.7900, Fax: 973.696.7988, e-mail: jon [at] gelmans [dot] com, Internet: www.gelmans.com.

Disrupt IT

http://realneo.us/East-Cleveland-litigating-over-lead

Norm Roulet

2 hours 36 min ago

Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council moves forward eradicating lead poisoning in NEO

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sun, 05/08/2005 - 01:24.

On March 31, 2005, the Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council (GCLAC) announced a significant initiative to eradicate lead poisoning in Greater Cleveland by 2010. On April 26th the GCLAC formally launched the initiative with a meeting of the membership held at Burke Lakefront Airport.

 

 

Director of the Cleveland Department of Public Health Matt Carroll leads the meeting ñ€“ all attendees introduce themselves and most are from state, county and Cleveland and area city health and development/housing organizations, healthcare, public services, faith organizations and legislature.

 

Matt points out the new GCLAC initiative for lead eradication by 2010 is the renewal of an initiative launched at Case in 2002 that concluded ñ€Ɠweñ€? need to do something about the lead problem in Greater Cleveland ñ€“ St. Lukeñ€ℱs has provided funding for moving forward.

 

Many people in room have been involved in lead issues for many years and we are taking this very seriously. We look for children to reach their full potential ñ€“ this is the opportunity for the attendees to get involved ñ€“ with your commitment we are able to get great things doneñ€© we have the perfect storm of dollars, expertise and commitment. This meeting was for determining the leadership that will move this effort forward and form committees and look for feedback ñ€“ GCLAC will be well organized and accountable for results.

Terry Allan (Director of the Cuyahoga County Board of Health) presented a Power-point presentation explaining the structure of the GCLAC.

 

Framework of council ñ€“ GCLAC has steering committee with five sub-committees ñ€“ Infrastructure/sustainability ñ€“ workforce development ñ€“ outreach/advocacy - program integration with medical ñ€“ environmental/property ownersñ€©

 

Membership is of the whole, which will have quarterly/semi-annual meetings. The five subcommittees will drive plan and be accountable to meet objectives. The membership will elect chairs of council and sub-committees will select their chairs. Work is already being done in many of the sub-committee sectors ñ€“ Environmental Healthwatch, Landlords committee, healthcare and childcare organizations. Elimination plan is found online at http://www.ccbh.net/pdf/lep.pdf.

 

Need steering committee to facilitate details of meeting plan ñ€“ agendas ñ€“ it will be comprised of 21 people including committee and sub-committee leaders and many state, county and legislative representatives and someone from the Case Medical School ñ€“ tie in the range of folks in the community with interests in lead eradication

 

Objectives for today - need discussion to elect chair, co-chair and secretary, adopt by-laws, identify steering committee representatives, and sign up members for sub-committees and set schedules for committee meetings.

â€č GCLAC & Eradicating Lead Poisoning in Greater ClevelandupAnnouncing "Greater Cleveland Plan to Eliminate Childhood Lead Poisoning by 2010" â€ș

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Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council Summary (4/26/05)

Submitted by Norm Roulet on Sun, 05/08/2005 - 01:53.

Terry Allan (Director of the Cuyahoga County Board of
Health) presented a Power-point presentation explaining the structure of the
GCLAC.

 

All in attendance consented that Matt Carroll (Director of
the Cleveland Department of Public Health) will be the chair of the GCLAC, Terry
will be the vice-chair and Lara Nochomovitz (Advocacy Associate, Lutheran
Metropolitan Ministry) will be the secretary.

 

All
in attendance received a copy of the by-laws. The only concern was in reference
to the section about Membership. It was noted that the language would prevent
individuals from other areas of the state (i.e. Mahoning, Lorain, Franklin
Counties, etc.) from participating in the group. It was noted that this was not
the intention and that the language would be changed appropriately.

 

Following the powerpoint description of GCLAC, the
nominations of Matt, Terry and Lara, and the discussion of the by-laws, all
participants broke into sub-groups. The sub-groups included: Outreach/Advocacy,
Medical, Integration, Environment/Property Owners, and Workforce.  Each sub-committee began discussing the
elimination plan and deliberating over its role in achieving those goals, and
set future meeting dates. Both the Outreach/Advocacy sub-committee and the
Medical sub-committee elected co-chairs. 
The co-chairs of the Outreach/Advocacy group will be Gail Long (Merrick
House) and William Riley (United Pastors in Mission). The co-chairs of the
Medical sub-committee will be Romona Redding (Cuyahoga County Board of Health)
and Bobbi Anderson (MetroHealth). For minutes from any one of the
sub-committees, please contact Lara Nochomovitz (lnochomovitz [at] lutheranmetro [dot] org).

 

 

Apart from the chair, vice-chair and elected co-chairs,
other steering committee members have not yet been identified.

 

Future Meeting Dates:

Steering Committee:
June 27th, 2 PM

 

Medical: June 28th,
9 AM CCBH

Outreach/Advocacy: May
20th, 11 AM, Merrick House

Environmental/Property
Owners: May 24th, 2 PM, CTO

Infrastructure: May
23rd, 2 PM, CDPH

Workforce:?

threat of lead poisons finally makes it to the PeeDee

Submitted by Susan Miller on Sat, 02/03/2007 - 10:20.

Finally!
 

St. Luke's wants help in fight to rid homes of lead poisoning

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Barb Galbincea

Plain Dealer Reporter

The St. Luke's Foundation is urging other grantmakers and area businesses to join it in combating lead poisoning among children.

Although the confirmed number of Cleveland children with excessive levels of lead in their bodies has dropped dramatically from 40 percent in 1996 to a 2006 rate of 11 percent, Cleveland still ranks among the top five cities nationally, according to experts. The national average is 2 percent.

"In the case of lead poisoning, what you don't know can kill you," Denise San Antonio Zeman, president of the foundation, said during a pitch to potential funding partners this week.

(If you are visiting this post in the future, you can google the title or search the article title in Cleveland Public Library databases and links library at www.cpl.org. You'll need your library card number and the last 4 of your phone.)

Also in today's PeeDee: 
 

Sherwin-Williams CEO to sell stock

 

Saturday, February 03, 2007

 

Chris Connor, chief executive of Sherwin-Williams Co., plans to exercise 200,000 of his stock options in the Cleveland paint company beginning in March and continuing through 2007, and to sell some of the shares. Securities law allows executives to use such plans to set up a schedule of transactions, so their deals aren't held up by rules that prevent them from trading on company information they know and the public doesn't.

Now what does he know that we don't???

http://realneo.us/creating-sustainable-neo/greater-cleveland-lead-advisory-council-moves-forward-eradicating-lead-poisoning-in-neo

Mitchell Balk is president of the Mt. Sinai Health Foundation. Sharon Sobol Jordan is president of the United Way of Greater Cleveland. Balk and Jordan are members of the Lead Safe Cleveland Coalition Executive Committee.

https://www.cleveland.com/opinion/2024/11/we-are-a-community-united-against-lead-poisoning-our-mission-continues-mitchell-balk-and-sharon-sobol-jordan.html

Norm Roulet

2 hours 26 min ago

Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson, city leaders discuss incentives of Sherwin-Williams HQ deal

Property and income tax breaks and grants could be worth $100 million.

Author: Mark Naymik (WKYC)

Published: 10:23 AM EST February 20, 2020

CLEVELAND — The City of Cleveland revealed today that it has offered global paint maker Sherwin-Williams an estimated $100 million worth of taxpayer incentives to build a $300 million headquarters near Public Square. The offer is unprecedented in the tenure of four-term Mayor Frank G. Jackson, but worth it, he said.

https://www.wkyc.com/article/news/local/cleveland/cleveland-leaders-discuss-sherwin-williams-incentives/95-c52292fb-1c94-48e9-ae24-c9f5e5aa0afc