Residents say elevated subway station on Brighton Beach is testing positive for lead paint, which falls onto cars and businesses

By Hannah Kliger

Updated on: August 18, 2023 / 5:44 PM / CBS New York

NEW YORK - Anytime passersby look up along Brighton Beach Avenue, peeling paint hangs off the old elevated subway line's beams, pillars and platforms.

"When the train passes, even on a quiet day, the paint will be falling down on the cars, on people passing by, and on the fruit stand, on food that we eat," says local resident Angela Kravtchenko.

Long considering it an eyesore, recently Kravtchenko's curiosity took over, so she purchased a lead paint testing kit online.

"I picked up four chips of paint, and three of four showed extreme amounts of lead and one was clear," she says.

The chip that had no lead came from a recently re-painted pillar.

It was a test she replicated on-camera to CBS New York's Hannah Kliger, in front of Yelena Makhnin, executive director of the Brighton Beach Business Improvement District.

Makhnin says she has been asking MTA to address the peeling paint for years.

"It's not about aesthetic, it's about a health hazard. And Brighton Beach is very well known for its elderly population," she says.

Just to be sure, Kliger replicated the test in a different location, using a different brand of test. Using two swabs, she swiped them on different parts of a pillar adjacent to a local bus stop. Both swabs immediately changed color, indicating the presence of lead.

"We brought the governor's office here to ask them to speak to the MTA and have them expedite the repainting of the tracks here," says Councilmember Inna Vernikov, explaining that she invited the state to see the subway even before Kravtchenko informed her of the lead.

Brighton Beach Avenue is a busy commercial strip with produce markets, outdoor dining, schools and nearby playgrounds.

That's why Vernikov, a Republican, joined with Democratic State Senator Jessica Scarcella-Spanton in a bipartisan effort. They wrote a letter to the MTA, calling on the agency to immediately conduct lab testing.

"We've done a lot at the state level to make sure that landlords are required to do lead remediation in their buildings. And I think it's time that we hold the MTA accountable to do the same, especially for these elevated stations," says Scarcella-Spanton.

MTA spokesperson Eugene Resnick responded with a statement that reads:

"Ensuring customer and community safety is one of the MTA's top priorities. New York City Transit is periodically inspecting city parks that are underneath or adjacent to our elevated structures for paint chips to ensure compliance with all relevant regulations and to minimize potential lead exposure. If there are any areas of concern along the Brighton Beach and Ocean Parkway line that require immediate attention, we will send personnel to inspect accordingly."

For those who live and work here, remediation can't come soon enough.

"People are being poisoned and it should stop," Makhnin says.

In May, we brought you a similar story, after activists rallied about lead paint at an elevated subway station in Bushwick.

This story came to our attention after a viewer sent this tip to Hannah's inbox. Have a story idea or tip in Brooklyn? Email her by CLICKING HERE.

First published on August 18, 2023 / 5:36 PM

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