John Mitty Thursday, January 24, 2013 |
Centereach, New York January 24, 2013
CDC of Long Island and Long Island Builders Institute, in partnership with NeighborWorks@ America, held its first Mold Remediation Training Course for Contractors at the Wind Watch Golf & Country Club in Hauppauge on Tuesday, January 22nd. This training was conducted by experts from National Center for Healthy Housing.
Post-Sandy, the need for specialized skill sets in the home repair field has become necessary in helping the region rebuild. To keep up with the ever-changing market demands in the wake of the storm, Long Island contractors were invited to attend a four hour training seminar where they learned the health impacts of mold, and remediation techniques. The training has been certified by the Performance Building Institute (BPI) for 2 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for contractors that are PBI certified and need to further their education in the building construction field.
“When the floodwaters receded, homeowners and contractors focused on rebuilding key structural elements. Not having faced flooding on this scale before, we on Long Island do not have wide expertise in how to rebuild so that mold does not become prevalent in the home,” said Marianne Garvin, President & CEO of CDCLI. “We also have a goal of educating the public on what it takes to rebuild a healthy home.”
CDC of Long Island, in partnership with the Long Island Builders Institute and NeighborWorks America, is committed to being a resource for homeowners as they rebuild their home. To that end, we have created a web page where homeowners may seek resources and information which can be found at http://www.cdcli.org/sandy-housing-solutions.
“The Long Island Builders Institute is pleased to be able to work with these two fine organizations to ensure that all of the contractors who are working on rebuilding Long Island have the knowledge and expertise necessary, not only to perform the work, but to explain to our residents the importance of the mold issue,” said Mitchell H. Pally, Chief Executive Officer of LIBI. “It is essential for everyone to understand how and why these issues affect the ability of the construction industry to rebuild and rehabilitate the thousands of homes and businesses which were affected by Sandy.”
Artie Cipoletti from DaVinci Construction and Vice President of LIBI said, "We have a mission and responsibility to provide our fellow Long Islanders a safe and healthy environment in their storm damaged homes. We will take whatever resources at our disposal to train contractors to insure that goal is met. This is new for all of us. We will proactively guarantee it happens."
“NeighborWorks America’s experiences working in response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the Gulf in showed the importance of good, accurate information on mold remediation to assure that homes were repaired appropriately for long term habilitation. We welcome the opportunity to present the newest technologies to the Long Island building community, and thank our affiliate CDC of LI and the Long Island Building Institute for their leadership in making this training possible,” said Deborah Boatright, Northeast Regional Director, NeighborWorks America.
“The work of CDC, the Long Island Builders Institute and NeighborWorks in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy has been outstanding,” said County Executive Bellone. “They have responded to the needs that have arisen and have been proactive in providing solutions to rebuilding. The training that took place today is yet another example of how these organizations have ensured that we rebuild in a safe and smart manner.”
Pete Zarcone, Executive Board Member Laborers Local 66, who did outreach to his members for them to attend the training said, “Laborers Local 66 is pleased to be able to assist in the recovery of Super Storm Sandy. This was by far the worst natural disaster that I have ever seen where it involved so many of my friends and neighbors. Many of my members who live across both counties have been affected by the devastation of the storm. In times like these we need to pull together and rebuild what I believe is the best place to live “Long Island”. I would like to recognize the CDC and Suffolk County for their approach to this disaster, and the training that they are providing for the mold remediation.”
Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano stated: "I commend the CDC and the Long Island Builders Institute for hosting this mold remediation training seminar. Mold exposure can cause serious health problems and it is an issue that hundreds of our residents are combating as a result of Superstorm Sandy. Just a few weeks ago, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer and I urged the FEMA to fund mold remediation efforts for our residents so they can get back in their homes safely and quickly. It is important we continue to partner in combating the mold epidemic and so many other issues that remain as a result of Hurricane Sandy."
About Community Development Corporation of Long Island
Community Development Corporation of Long Island (CDCLI) is a not-for-profit organization that supports Long Islanders pursuing their housing and small business dreams. Since its inception 43 years ago, CDCLI invests its resources, talents and knowledge in households, small business and communities by assisting more than 134,700 Long Islanders and investing $861 million into their communities. Last fiscal year alone, CDCLI served more than 23,200 Long Islanders investing nearly $92.2 million into their communities. For more information, please visit http://www.cdcli.org. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/cdcoflongisland and follow us on Twitter @cdclongisland.
|