 GCN Recovery News Report
This report will constantly be
updated as information becomes available Groundbreaking for several new public housing developments in Hancock County late in June provided another Katrina recovery note for that county. Katrina's storm surge destroyed public housing apartments in Waveland and Bay St. Louis. But nearly four years after the storm, the new developments are going up. Most of the residents of the previous units were elderly. (More Here)
Biloxi has begun an ambitious
effort to restore its historical structures damaged by Katrina including
the city's main icon, t While there is much on Biloxi beach that has yet to see rebuilding from Katrina, you can count on the Biloxi Pierotich family to bring back their well-known beachfront souvenir stores. Souvenir City, the first of the family's two stores that once were on the beach reopened in June. The family's second store, Sharkheads, that was located on U.S. 90 near Rodenberg Ave. will also return, but for now the family has their hands full with Souvenir City, just east of Treasure Bay Casino. (Click Here for More) Biloxi is moving past Katrina with a massive
kickoff of Meanwhile, Biloxi has issued more than $110 million in construction permits since the first of the year, on track with the quarter-billion dollars in permits in all of last year, which Community Development Director Jerry Creel calls a remarkable feat considering the state of the national economy. Most of the inquiries his department hears from developers these days involve hotels, motels and senior housing, but single-family homes also are being built. (More Here) Across the Katrina Disaster Zone there are
residents that have yet to resolve their housing situation and are
still receiving In an effort to resolve the lingering issues of Katrina housing, the Obama administration announced June 3 a new initiative that could help residents still in trailers. According to the Miami Herald, the Obama Administration will provide $50 million in housing vouchers and, for those interested, a chance to buy a trailer for as little as $1. The plan was announced by the Federal Energy Management Agency and the Housing and Urban Development Administration and would make the $50 million in newly appropriated money available on a priority basis to low-income Gulf Coast residents of Mississippi and Louisiana. There will also be expanded transition services and funding from the stimulus bill to help with such services as security deposits. To Mississippi Development Agency Gulf Coast Housing director Gerald Blessey, the plan is a breath of fresh air. "I think that all the initiatives will be very, very helpful, especially for those in temporary housing," said Blessey, who credits housing subcommittee chair Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., for the voucher funding. The $1 trailer, he added, is a "great deal" and a choice that many residents have been asking officials for. "It does empower the occupant to make some choices," said Blessey. To read FEMA's latest statement on the housing solution, (CLICK HERE) This is a good thing. There are many such people that have found affordable housing nearly impossible to find near their jobs and supporting families. Some people would say, "Well, these people should just move." That has been done for those who can. Those who remain often are elderly or have needs that require them to remain in the communities that they love. There will be an end to the support these people have received and continue to need. The FEMA May 1 deadline marked the beginning of that end. The concern among community volunteers working with Katrina residents still receiving assistance is that many of these resident's needs would be better addressed by Mississippi's Department of Human Services. This is because the remaining resident's problems are more associated with social service-type issues that FEMA is not capable of addressing. The problem is that the state has been slow to take up the issue, according to GCN's sources. Meanwhile, as of May 29th, FEMA reports the following numbers of FEMA-supplied housing still in use:
The Sea Coast Echo reports that the Hancock County Board of Supervisors moving forward on a state sponsored buy-out plan which will supply about $10 million for purchases of flood prone properties. Supervisors recently approved local engineering company CDM to administer the program, which will receive its funds from MEMA through a FEMA hazard mitigation grant. This buy-out program is a different one that the Corps of Engineers project which has not yet received funding from Congress. (More Here) Waveland officials are being told by the Mississippi Development Authority to speed up Katrina-related recovery projects. The main project that MDA wanted to get moving forward was the new north-side fire station, according to a report in the Sea Coast Echo. (More Here) The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is proposing to forgive loans local governments received after the 2005 hurricanes. The Federal Emergency Management Agency provided nearly $1.3 billion in community disaster loans in Louisiana and Mississippi after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Forgiveness of the loans could expedite recovery for the communities affected by the storms, particularly smaller communities whose budgets have been strained to the breaking point since the disaster and have had trouble rebuilding. (More Here) As part of her ongoing effort to streamline Gulf Coast recovery following her recent visit to New Orleans, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano will transition management oversight of the Mississippi Long Term Recovery Office (LTRO) from Biloxi, Miss., to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) regional office in Atlanta, Ga. "This signifies all of the progress that has been made in Mississippi," said Secretary Napolitano. "Office consolidation will lead to faster decision making and smoother and more efficient operations as we move forward. It’s an important step in finishing the rebuilding effort and getting residents back on their feet even faster." To GCN, moving the recovery decision process away from where the work actually needs to be done is a step backwards, not forward. While great progress has been made in the recovery in the major Coast cities, it appears now that work in the smaller communities will take more time. (More Here) The Mississippi Gulf Coast population continues to lag behind levels before Hurricane Katrina hit Aug. 29, 2005, according to U.S. Census Bureau population estimates. The overall population level of the three coastal counties is 93 percent of the pre-Katrina measure. (More Here) For more than three years GCN has been noting that the recovery from
Hurricane Katrina has moved too In a meeting, March 4, before the sluggishly performing Gulf Coast Business Council, Governor Haley Barbour said that there is over $2.8 billion of unspent money earmarked to help the Coast recover that has yet to be spent. The governor urged local political and business leaders to "Pick up the pace" or the money would be allocated elsewhere in the state. "I am proud of the progress that has been made, but we all know that we have to step it up a notch. We have to take another step down the road in rebuilding the Mississippi Gulf Coast bigger and better. I'm not trying to be critical, I'm just trying to be honest about what we have to do," he said. (More Here) The Flagship United Community Development Corporation (FUCDC) received a $500,000 Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (Bank) on behalf of Hancock Bank in Waveland, Mississippi. The grant will be used for the construction of Oak Haven Apartments, a 80-unit duplex and four-plex apartment community for elderly residents. Housing for elderly and fixed income residents is in very short supply in the Waveland/Bay St. Louis area. FUCDC was established after Hurricane Katrina to focus on areas substantially damaged by hurricanes. The FUCDC is fully operated by the Bay-Waveland Housing Authority. There are indications that several Coast communities
that were most severely affected by Katrina may be facing a crisis over
falling tax revenues. Smaller towns such as Long Beach and Pass
Christian are sharply affected by the slow progress of the recovery and
declining tax revenues, made worse by the struggling economy. While
these communities are making progress, they are short on cash. As the
FEMA-supported recovery is still in place, most of the FEMA programs
require communities pay into the recovery work and then are re-imbursed.
Without money to provide the local payment, the program stalls. Nearly four years after hurricane Katrina, nearly two-thirds of the federal money promised by Congress to help Mississippi and Louisiana recover has yet to be spent. While $5.8 billion in federal aid was promised, more than $3.9 billion remains unspent to make permanent repairs and replacements for public works damaged by the hurricanes. The why is a convoluted story of regulations, and uncertainty of how to proceed. Throughout the region the damages remain evident in the lack of rebuilt public buildings and services. In many cases, the problems stem from local governments which struggle to meet the matching payments to receive the assistance and the high cost of replacing what was lost. There has also been an issue of manpower at local levels to sort through the regulatory process in getting the funds to do the work. These are not new issues, GCN has been commenting on the difficulties since the hurricane hit the Coast on August 29, 2005. While tremendous progress has been made, that progress is tempered by work that often exceeds local government staffing abilities to solve the problems. From the beginning, local authorities have not received funds to hire additional staffing to move the process more efficiently forward. In most cases, the counties and communities have had to work with diminishing budgets and staff and with the growing tax losses from the struggling economy, even more pressure is on local governments to get the work done. If the new federal stimulus bill passed by Congress moves as haltingly as the federal Katrina recovery programs, the nation will soon experience what those of us in the Katrina disaster area already know. Don't count on help that is timely or efficient, and don't expect your local officials to do more without the money to get the help they need. Homelessness and the potential for homelessness remains a real issue in the smaller and poorer communities in the Katrina Disaster zone. The people affected are not just the poor, but include the elderly on fixed incomes and illegal immigrants who struggle every day to meet the higher costs of just day to day living. What is alarming is that the traditional safety nets established to help such people are already stressed to the maximum and with the growing economic concerns Katrina recovery volunteers, community service workers and local government officials see a developing problem growing much worse. There are already indications that the economic situation is affecting young adults and families who have not before faced issues of income loss and the potential loss of housing and who were not part of the initial Katrina disaster affects. Affordable housing, even affordable apartments still are not available in the numbers that are anticipated to be needed.
With more than 26,900 grants awarded, the Mississippi
Development Authority (MDA) Disaster Recovery Division
estimates all Homeowners Assistance Program (HAP) awards will be
completed within the first quarter of 2009, about a
year ahead of
projections.
“Certainly we had some bumps because this program was the first of its
kind, but overall HAP has been very successful,” said Jon Mabry,
Chief Operations Officer of MDA’s Disaster Recovery Division. “Almost
96 percent of grantees have rebuilt or plan to rebuild their homes,
restoring significant housing stock in the three Coastal counties and
contributing to the region’s overall economic recovery.” HAP Reuters via insurance journal.com reports that the U.S. recession and credit crisis have stalled a financing program created to help Mississippi and Louisiana recover from 2005's devastating hurricanes . A special bond program called Gulf Opportunity Zone bonds, or GoZone bonds, are not being sold as expected. (More Here) (GCN photo right: Apartment construction in D'Iberville) FEMA and the
Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) have issued their summary
for 2008 Katrina recovery progress. The agencies report
many accomplishments were made in 2008 as the state continues its
recovery
D'Iberville's $6.5 million new City Hall has completed the The ubiquitous
orange and white traffic cones along U.S. 90 from Biloxi to Pass
Christian are gone. MDOT's contractors finished the rebuilding of the
Katrina-damaged U.S. 90 in late March. For more than 17 months contractors have worked
furiously on the $100 million project made necessary by The last of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) group housing sites for mobile homes closed in December.. FEMA, local governments and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency have been working diligently together to close the FEMA-managed temporary housing sites.
“The closing of
group sites is a tangible sign of the progress the people of
Coast political leaders are still seeking ways to replace the thousand of smaller homes lost during hurricane Katrina that have yet to be replaced. While many new apartments are coming online, even more than prior to Katrina, small affordable homes and moderate income rental homes are still in short supply. Many of the areas where such homes existed prior to the hurricane are in low lying areas and cannot be replaced. Connected to the replacement issue are much higher costs for home insurance, as well as the new FEMA-mandated flood elevation requirements. Several communities have yet to finally approve the new elevation requirements, but will have to eventually to continue participation in the national flood insurance program at rates residents can afford.
Another issue is that many of the
former home locations are on lots that no longer meet code for setback
and fire protection reasons. Eventually, many of these lots will have to
be purchased and combined for future development. Raising homes requires
ramps for handicapped access, which requires lot sizes with enough space
to construct the ramps. Recovery officials recently transferred funds
set aside for elevating homes to infrastructure funding, such as water
and sewer replacements as the money for raising homes was not being
used. Meanwhile, public meetings are being held to find
alternatives to the housing situation. Many of the new homes constructed
since the hurricane are called "affordable" by
contractors, but are still priced beyond what many workers
can afford in Mississippi. What are needed are homes in the $80,000 to
$120,000 range, but that is not what has been built so far. Gulfport residents supporting the renovation of the former Harrison County Library in Gulfport are still at work to find a way to salvage the Katrina-damaged library that once served residents in the city. FEMA will pay to build another library in the Orange Grove area of the city, but the existing structure was determined to be to close to the water and prone to damage from future storms. The city's administration has opposed keeping the building, but the county determined that the group wanting to preserve the structure should be allowed more time to find a way to restore and keep the structure and has a year to do that. A massive $355 million in infrastructure work is now underway in the City of Biloxi. The work includes repaving or rebuilding of more than 100 miles of streets, storm drains and water lines in areas flooded by Katrina's storm surge. FEMA is paying for the entire series of projects.
Waveland municipal government is out
of temporary trailers and is now located at the Waveland Professional
Plaza on Hwy. 90.The move earlier this year closed the temporary trailer complex at Coleman Ave. All government functions
are at the plaza except the fire department
which will remain at Coleman Ave. The was paid for by FEMA
at a cost of $339,979 for the relocation of the offices and a
one-year lease. The complex, Waveland Professional Plaza, LLC--located on
Hwy. 90 next to Sonic-- supplies the city with nearly Pass Christian received $25 million in Katrina recovery funds to expand the city's harbor, which was destroyed by the 2005 storm and damaged again in Hurricane Gustav this year. The Harbor is a key component of the city's economic base. In some additional good news for Pass Christian, Wal-Mart broke ground for a new store in November to replace the supercenter that was destroyed by Katrina. Wall-Mart was a major contributor to the city's tax base and has been sorely missed by the struggling town. The new store is located nearly at the same location, but placed farther from the beach. It is expected to open late next year. (GCN photo: Pass Christian Wal-Mart after Katrina) GulfCoastNews.com received a prestigious award during the Online News Association annual meeting held in Washington, Oct. 6-8, 2006. During award ceremonies Oct. 8, GCN received the ONA Excellence in Service Journalism Award for small websites for its GCN Survivor Connector Database. "This is truly a deep honor," said Keith Burton, GCN's owner and editor. "The GCN database was created to help people that were relocated from evacuations during Hurricane Katrina, but I never realized at the time how it would help so many people." (More Here)
|
he
Biloxi Lighthouse. The lighthouse stood up to Katrina but damaged it
was. (
waterfront repairs starting with the Coliseum Pier, the first
of a new string of construction contracts that will eventually see more
than $30 million in repairs to four public piers, two fishing bridges,
and completion of ongoing repairs at four public marinas and harbors.
The Coliseum pier – a $283,000, 270-day project – will see the
restoration of a 908-foot pier that was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.
The work is expected to be completed in nine months. The Coliseum pier
work is the first of several expected to move forward over the next
several weeks and months. The bulk of the estimated $30 million in
repair work will involve the fishing bridges at Point Cadet and Back
Bay, and finishing of restoration of the city's four harbors and
marinas.
FEMA and MEMA assistance. This comes as the May 1 deadline for FEMA
assistance is now in effect. Officials with the government say they will
be slow to evict the remaining residents of cottages (GCN photo right)
and FEMA trailers. 
slowly and has questioned "Where is the Money?" Now we know.
from
Hurricane Katrina. “In the last year, the state of Mississippi made
great strides in the recovery process,” said Alec Watson, acting
director of FEMA’s Mississippi Transitional Recovery Office (TRO). “It’s
a tribute to the dedication of the state, local communities and
individual Mississippians as we all work together to rebuild south
Mississippi.” FEMA says thousands of residents were able to
transition out of disaster housing and into permanent housing. Millions
of dollars have been obligated to the public school districts.
Communities are steadily rebuilding stronger and safer than before. (
While
progress toward recovery is evident everywhere, it is not an equal
process and the Coast still bares the scars of the hurricane that hit on
August 29, 2005. There remains hundreds of private homes and businesses
that have not returned or been rebuilt. There are also vast areas and
entire neighborhoods that have not recovered, the empty lots still speak
loudly of the loss that still remains. This is particularly noticeable
the smaller communities of Pass Christian, Bay St. Louis, Waveland, west
Gulfport and the Point Cadet area in Biloxi. Throughout the Coast, city
and county governments are still operating on emergency rules as
rebuilding continues. While conditions overall have dramatically
improved, the task of rebuilding the Coast remains a long-term process.
(GCN Photo left: Empty beachfront
neighborhood in Waveland)
