Should Des Moines landlords test drinking water for lead? Council member proposes change
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Debate erupted among Des Moines City Council members Monday night over a proposal to require rental properties to test for lead in water as part of the coming changes to the city's housing code.
Council member Josh Mandelbaum proposed adding language to the new housing code that would require rental property owners to test drinking water for lead as part of the rental certification process. Although several of the council members said they supported the idea, most said they wanted to move the housing code changes forward and come back to the issue later.
Des Moines Water Works has identified 20,000 city properties that either have or are likely to have lead service lines, Mandelbaum said. Lead service lines, or pipes made of lead, can leech the harmful chemical into drinking water. Exposure to lead can lead to health problems, including brain damage and slowed developmental growth among children.
"We have a duty to provide safe rental housing and we know there is a potential hazard with some of these properties," he said. He added he raised the issue during a previous work session and it was not further addressed.
In the ensuing 20-minute discussion, most members disagreed with the idea of adding the requirement to the proposed code changes on Monday. Council member Linda Westergaard said she preferred to wait until Des Moines Water Works could be included in the discussion.
"I don't want to willy-nilly just add something until we've had the chance to evaluate it, until we've had the opportunity to meet with Des Moines Water Works," said Westergaard, adding she was concerned with how the proposed change might impact rental prices. "I think we have a lot more work to do before we pass something like this."
Council member Indira Sheumaker said lead is a pressing safety issue.
"We need to know if there's lead in the water if people are living in these units, affordable or not, and if they're going to be drinking water," Sheumaker said. "If it's going to be passed on to the renter anyway, it turns into medical bills. And so this is something that's very important for us to be moving forward."
Council member Joe Gatto, deputy director of Neighborhood Services SuAnn Donovan and city manager Scott Sanders agreed on the importance of addressing service lines, but said it was a discussion for a later time.
"I do not want us to get perfection and hold up this action," Sanders said. "Don't hold up a good policy that we have in front of us, get it implemented."
According to a city memo, as it stands, the changes to the housing code would:
Adopt updated 2021 standards from the International Property Maintenance Code, which establishes minimum requirements for the maintenance of existing buildings through model code regulations.
Strike provisions in the International Property Maintenance Code that conflict with city policies and procedures such as the housing appeals board, demolition practices and sending notices.
Amend the code to reflect the now-standardized EnerGov process and procedures. EnerGov is a data management system used by the city for housing-related information including land use planning and project review, regulatory management, inspections, code enforcement and citizen requests.
Amend the housing code to clarify what constitutes a public nuisance to make it easy to understand and to pull required permits.
Amend the code to correct typographical and spelling errors.
"If we can get this legislation passed, we can get some breathing room to start working on that problem comprehensively," Donovan said when she addressed the council.
Council members unanimously passed the code changes and waived a second and third vote. Mayor Frank Cownie called for a January work session to address the issue of lead service lines.
Virginia Barreda is the Des Moines city government reporter for the Register. She can be reached at vbarreda@dmreg.com. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Should Des Moines landlords test drinking water for lead?
