One such contractor, James Thornton (who is also featured separately in this newsletter), contacted the Healthy Homes Department and to-date, his company, SuperConstructors, has successfully completed about 20 home remediation and repair projects, ranging from $800 to $4,700 in cost. In a separate interview for this newsletter, James shares his own experiences on the road to becoming a licensed contractor, as well as the personal and professional benefits of participating in both the County’s Contractor Bonding Assistance Program and the Healthy Homes Department Program.
The opportunities for contractors are abundant. According to April, for this fiscal year alone, the Healthy Homes Department will be completing 180-200 home repairs, with 165 completed so far. Having secured more funding for the next fiscal year, she anticipates completing about 240 home repairs. Lead remediation work, which does require specialized contractor certification, is counted separately, with 140 projects to be completed over three years. “Starting with the smaller home repairs is a great way to work into getting lead-certified,” notes April, “and there is a huge amount of work available in the lead remediation field.”
Contractors interested in pursuing work with the Healthy Homes Department should have good interpersonal skills and enjoy working with people from diverse backgrounds. “Our clients deserve compassionate, respectful interactions and attention to quality in completing repairs,” emphasizes April, “We want to continue to successfully reach as many people as possible, because there is such a great need to try to keep seniors and disabled community members in their existing homes.”
For more information about the Healthy Homes Department, please visit: http://www.achhd.org