Mayor Weaver to Kick Off Fast Start Project with First Lead Line Removal

March 3, 2016 (FLINT) — On Friday, March 4, 2016 Mayor Karen Weaver is kicking off her Fast Start initiative intended to replace lead pipes in Flint to restore safe, clean drinking water as soon as possible to the citizens affected by this man-made water disaster. She’s calling on Gov. Rick Snyder to pressure GOP leaders in the Legislature to move immediately to approve $25 million for the first phase of the $55 million plan, and also wants the governor to support the bipartisan plan led by Michigan Senators Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters for $220 million in clean water and health funding. The City of Flint and contractors are working to confirm the presence of service lines to homes made of lead or affected by lead contamination.  The Fast Start initiative will be targeted first at homes in neighborhoods with the highest number of children under 6 years old, senior citizens, pregnant women, people with compromised immune systems, and households where water tests indicate high levels of lead at the tap.

Fast Start is just the first step in an overall vision to restore Flint’s infrastructure to be safe and sustainable for future generations, and is only part of the effort needed to heal and renew this community through access to health care, children and family services, educational resources, economic revitalization and job creation.