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July 2021 

NYCHA Launches TEMPO to Address Lead-based Paint at Developments

Vincent Echavaria

NYCHA has announced the launch of the newly formed Team for Enhanced Management Planning and Outreach, or TEMPO, a program dedicated to outreach, inspection, and remediation in NYCHA apartments where there is known or presumed lead-based paint, and where a child under the age of 6 lives or routinely spends more than 10 hours per week.

“NYCHA’s TEMPO program will allow work to be done faster, increase communication and supervision, and provide greater protection for our families,” said NYCHA Chair and CEO Greg Russ. “This critical work is a huge step forward in our efforts around lead-based paint and will increase the safety of our households with young children.”

“TEMPO is precisely the proactive, state of the art lead program that NYCHA families deserve,” said Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Vicki Been. “Since 2019, in collaboration with its federal partners, NYCHA has been dedicated to developing a lead action plan and creating compliance, training, testing and outreach protocols to address and eradicate lead in New York City public housing. TEMPO is an important result of this work as we move forward in addressing this critical issue.”

TEMPO was created as part of the Initial Lead Action Plan, which was approved by the Federal Monitor in January. The program expedites lead abatement (work to permanently remove or, in some cases, cover the lead component) and enhances lead safety protocols during repair work that could disturb lead-based paint. TEMPO is focused on three main objectives: 

  • Conducting more frequent inspections of lead-hazards in apartments with children under 6: Instead of conducting one inspection annually, there will be twice per year visual assessments in apartments where children under 6 live or routinely visit more than 10 hours per week. Residents enrolled in TEMPO can request additional assessments during the year by calling the Customer Contact Center at 718-707-7771.
  • Prioritizing abatement of lead-based paint in apartments with children under 6: NYCHA will prioritize abatement (removing or, in some cases, permanently covering the paint) in apartments where children under 6 live or regularly visit. The first group of apartments that NYCHA will abate are apartments with a child under 6 that that have two or fewer positive components. (Components include objects such as pipes, closet shelves, window sills, baseboards, walls, etc.). NYCHA will announce plans to abate additional child under 6 apartments by the end of 2021.
  • Establishing a single, accountable team to do repairs and remediation in child under 6 apartments with 3 or more lead-based paint components: All repair and remediation work involving lead paint requires lead safe work practices and compliance with rules and regulations. However, for apartments with children under 6 that have a higher number of lead components (three or more), special care is needed to ensure that any work performed is protective of the children in the apartment. The TEMPO Repair team creates a single trained, dedicated team to address repairs and remediation for this group apartments. This will enable faster, better sequenced repairs, more staff accountability, and the ability to implement measures such as temporary relocation of the family during repairs or remediation.  

TEMPO work will be conducted by teams of certified workers who follow strict lead-based paint protocols to keep residents safe, including restricting access to areas where paint-disturbing work is being performed. NYCHA is focusing its most aggressive protocols at apartments where young children spend the most time.

To distinguish between the apartments where children under 6 live and those where children only regularly visit, NYCHA will: 

  • Perform annual door knocking surveys to residents asking to confirm if a child under 6 lives in the apartment or routinely visits. The most recent door knocking survey was conducted in June 2021.
  • Encourage residents, through better outreach, to identify whether a child under 6 lives in or regularly visits the apartment through the Annual Notices form and as part of Annual and Interim Recertification, and make it easier for residents to update this information online at any time throughout the year.

Depending on apartment conditions, residents will be offered temporary accommodations if the work is required in a critical room and the TEMPO team cannot complete the work in a day. If residents choose not to relocate, the TEMPO team will restrict access to the areas of the apartment where paint-disturbing work is being performed, until the work areas are safe to enter.

You can find FAQs and more information about TEMPO here: on.nyc.gov/lead-safety.