Often, during my weekly call to my mother, the conversation turns to some aspect of Lakewood that is missing in her community an hour to the west. After St. Patrick’s Day we chatted about the special fried green tomato and havarti sandwiches from Melt (her town is more of a Bob Evans type of place). On numerous occasions she’s talked about moving to the bottom floor of a Lakewood duplex once she retires, and while I’m sure she looks forward to truffled corn bisque from Souper Market, it is Lakewood’s services that she really admires and that I consider a keystone of this community.

Several weeks ago I read an announcement in The Observer about Operation Paintbrush, a Division of Community Development program that assists lower-income Lakewood homeowners with the cost of exterior painting. Normally this would be the sort of program I would talk with my mom about as I walk the dog; however, I can’t help but think ‘The Thinking City’ can do better.

I have been unable to track down information specific to Ohio, but our good neighbors across the lake estimate that approximately 80% of residential greenhouse gas emissions in Canada are produced in the process of heating the home and it’s water. It is also estimated that the average Canadian home produces more than 13,000 pounds of greenhouse gases every year (for comparisons sake, it would take driving more than 14,000 miles in my 2001 VW station wagon to produce the same amount of greenhouse emissions).

I propose that in the future the funds used for Operation Paintbrush be recommitted to assisting the same homeowners with the purchase and installation of high-efficiency furnaces or boilers, Energy Star windows, and/or insulating their attics and walls.

My background is music, so this is far from my area of expertise. There are many angles from which to examine this, from the cost and benefit of the various potential projects, to the increases in property value for the homes and neighborhoods involved. Despite my background, I do know that when I purchased my home a few years ago, the boiler was already 55 years old. When it was brand new, he told me, it might have been 50% efficient; he also told me it was three times larger than what the house required.

While we may ultimately have to live with an eyesore on the block, I can’t help but think that given the opportunity to make an environmentally responsible choice, as well as provide a helping hand that will pay dividends for years to come for the families involved, it is an obvious decision to redirect the dollars of Operation Paintbrush.

Devin Baty