Health and housing
advocates urged city officials Friday to crack down on landlords who fail to
make necessary repairs, after residents of Bushwick, Brooklyn
complained that they were sick after being exposed to pests and pesticides.

A new report released by the "Make the Road New York" advocacy organization
and City Councilwoman Diana Reyna says Bushwick residents are exposed in their
homes to high levels of pesticides and pests like mice, rats and cockroaches.

The report says the
exposure is leading to increased asthma rates in Bushwick and neighboring Williamsburg. Department
of Health officials say asthma rates in Bushwick are nearly four times the city
average.

"Make the Road New York"
says 85 percent of residents in the community have at least one of the
toxic conditions in their homes.

The group is calling for more stringent city
regulations and community education programs on the proper uses of pesticides.