Town of Arlington, Fair Housing Action Plan (July 2021)

Citation: Town of Arlington, Fair Housing Action Plan (July 2021)
Jurisdiction: Arlington (municipal)
Source: Official source
Original Source: https://www.arlingtonma.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/57214/637641171662530000 ↗

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article: Cem Akkus and Esra Ozdenerol. “Exploring Childhood Lead Exposure through GIS: A Review of the Recent Literature.”
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. (2014) https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24945189/

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Arlington Fair Housing Action Plan

maintenance issues and tenants typically have less control over the maintenance of their home. Because Arlington
households tend to be relatively high-income and homeowners, Arlington residents likely have less risk of lead
exposure than other communities in the region. Indeed, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health considers
Arlington a low-risk community based on its income, the percent of homes built before 1978, and the incidence of
elevate blood lead levels.45
Nonetheless, while the community as a whole may have a low risk of lead exposure, individual households may
still be at risk. This is especially true for households of color, low-income households, low-income, renters and
those with specialized housing needs.46 Households in these groups are more likely to face a lack of available
housing options, lack of control over lead-based paint abatement in the case of renters, a lack of knowledge
about tenants’ rights to lead abatement, and/or fear of retribution or eviction if the presence of lead is
reported. This divergent risk of lead exposure is a both a product of and driver of impediments to fair housing
access, since households in protected classes may have no option other than to live in high-risk homes and may
have even fewer choices if accessible homes are high-risk.
Assessment: While Arlington residents’ overall risk for lead-based paint exposure is low, that risk is likely to be
disproportionately high for members of protected classes.