Cape Fear Community College is working with the city of Wilmington to offer a construction trades program aimed to improve and grow the local trade workforce.

CFCC and the city announced Wednesday the offering of a variety of lead-based paint safety training courses for local contractors and volunteers, according to a news release.

"The primary goal of these training programs is to increase employment opportunities for individuals and grow the labor force of local contractors qualified as a certified renovator and/or a certified renovation firm that can perform renovation, repair, and painting projects on behalf of the city for homes where lead-based paint hazards are present," officials said in the release.

The lead-based paint safety training is open to the public, said Sonya Johnson, spokeswoman for the college.

“We’re excited to partner with the city of Wilmington to provide training that will not only help make our community a safer place, but will also create more jobs and grow the existing workforce,” said Erica Talbert, CFCC's associate vice president of Economic and Workforce Development.

This training is available because of a Housing and Urban Development Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control grant made to the city of Wilmington’s Lead Hazard Reduction/Healthy Homes Program, stated the release.

"We hope to work with the city when similar future opportunities arise," Talbert said in an email. "We are excited about the opportunity to work with the city on the upcoming Lead-Based Safety Training Courses -- they are a great way to improve the quality of life for local residents as well as train contractors on EPA-approved remediation practices."

The new lead-based safety training programs will expand the work CFCC does with the city of Wilmington, Johnson said. The college regularly partners with the city to provide professional development training opportunities for city employees.

For the public, CFCC's Economic and Workforce Development Division regularly offers short-term training classes for the area's workforce development in the construction trades, Talbert said.

The college currently offers a variety of training classes and certification opportunities, including those in HVAC, apartment maintenance and welding, as well as electrical and plumbing apprenticeships, Talbert said.

The college also offers a Historic Preservation Construction Certification and many longer-term degree programs in the sector, she said.

Those interested in the lead-based paint safety training program should contact Marta Maietta, CFCC training coordinator, at 910-362-7164 or [email protected].