On September 20, 2017, Catherine Clabby wrote about BUILD Health Challenge’s funding for Collaborative Cottage Grove, for North Carolina Health News:
“A research center at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro last summer repurposed Google ‘street view’ photos to survey the exteriors of 78,000 city buildings, one property at a time. The results allowed the center to map clusters of city housing in serious disrepair.
“Because mold and cockroach infestations produce allergens that can trigger asthma attacks, student surveyors took pains to note cracks in foundations and gaps in flashing near chimneys and rooflines. Both increase the chance that water and insects will invade a home.
“The effort took months. But once finished, UNCG sociologist Stephen Sills could merge maps showing clusters of poor-quality housing with Cone Health System data locating the neighborhoods housing city children who most frequently visit a hospital due to asthma attacks. The hot spots overlapped, suggesting a strong correlation.”