Lead paint peeling off the foundation of a home in Syracuse. Credit: Mike Greenlar | The Central Current

Central Current reported this story with support from the Health Foundation for Western and Central New York.

A Syracuse landlord will pay 16 families $5,000 apiece after their children were poisoned by lead paint in the landlord’s homes. 

William D’Angelo, the landlord, and the New York State Attorney General’s Office agreed D’Angelo would pay the families a total of $80,000 and spend another $230,000 to remediate lead issues at 22 properties he owns across the city. 

The preliminary agreement was outlined in a court hearing Thursday and stems from a case in which D’Angelo was sued by Attorney General Letitia James, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon and Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh. They brought the suit against D’Angelo, of Liverpool, in July. 

The lawsuit alleged D’Angelo’s mismanagement of his properties led to hundreds of breaches of lead safety laws, resulting in about 336 code violations related to lead paint and dust at 27 homes since 2016. They alleged the state of disrepair at the properties caused at least 16 children to suffer from elevated blood lead levels. James’ office alleged in court records one of the children was poisoned in October last year, two months after the suit was filed.

Advocates say that while the settlement will help the 16 families, the $5,000 is inadequate considering the consequences of childhood lead poisoning and the costs of treatment. 

“I consider the settlement to be entirely inexcusable,” said Sandra Lane, a professor of public health and anthropology at Syracuse University.

Lane, who worked with local officials and community advocates in drafting the city’s lead ordinance in 2020, noted that lead poisoning can lead to attention deficit disorders, renal failure, and major cardiovascular problems. 

Despite advocates’ frustration with the settlement, they said the case marked a new approach by the attorney general’s office in fighting the lead crisis. In its case against D’Angelo and another case against landlord Todd Hobbs, the AG’s office made the landlords address property disrepair instead of pushing them to sell and barring them from operating in the state. In a prior case filed against Endzone properties, James’ office secured a $215,000 that would go toward helping families affected by lead poisoning in the area, but the settlement did not compel landlord John Kiggins to fix the properties. 

Oceanna Fair, a member of Families for Lead Freedom Now, called this approach a slight win, but called on state officials to mandate landlords to disclose the presence of lead in a property at the point of sale or lease to further prevent issues with lead. 

“We still have some ways to go,” Fair said. “But these public actions are telling landlords it is time to step up if they want to avoid these hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.”

D’Angelo has said in court filings he wants to own and manage fewer properties. He now can sell the 17 properties that were not part of Thursday’s settlement and will be able to sell the other 22 properties if he makes the necessary repairs. 

A third-party monitor will oversee D’Angelo’s compliance with the terms of the deal. 

D’Angelo’s attorney Scott Iseman did not respond to a request for comment.

The case’s next court hearing is expected March 21.

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Eddie Velazquez is a Syracuse journalist covering economic justice in the region. He is focused on stories about organized labor, and New York's housing and childhood lead poisoning crises. You can follow...