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Six Months Later: Only Six Tornado Victims Approved For State Housing Help
August 7, 2016
Nearly six months after two devastating tornadoes struck Escambia County, only six homeowners have been approved for state housing disaster funds for tornado recovery.
The Florida Housing Finance Corporation notified Escambia County in March that they had approved $2,058,028 in State Housing Initiatives Partnership, or SHIP, disaster funds for the two tornadoes that struck Escambia County in February. Funds were appropriated to assist with owner occupied housing rehabilitation, replacement, and disaster mitigation as outlined in the county’s Local Housing Assistance Plan.
The funds were split between damage caused by a February 15 EF-3 tornado in Century and a February 23 EF-3 tornado in Pensacola. Century alone suffered $3.9 million in damage, while there was another $18 million in damage in Pensacola. There were over 100 homes in Century that were destroyed or suffered major damage. About 75 percent of the structures were uninsured.
Beginning in April, dozens of homeowners applied for SHIP funding through Escambia County. According to the latest numbers available from county officials, only six SHIP funding grants have been approved — one for housing rehabilitation and five for complete reconstruction. SHIP funds were restricted to homeowners meeting certain low income requirements.
One delay in funding approval in Century has been the town’s historic district. For applicants in the historic district, the process requires additional review and approval by the state.
Pictured top: A destroyed home in Century. Pictured below: Housing assistance applications were accepted by Escambia County for residents in the unincorporated areas at Century Town Hall. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Comments
8 Responses to “Six Months Later: Only Six Tornado Victims Approved For State Housing Help”
Many of these taxpayer funded grants & programs require the homeowner to also be the primary resident.
Not a homeowner that rents it out to someone else.
Renters are not eligible.
@ anne, most of the homeowners could not get house insurance after hurricane Ivan. My sister owns a house on Front Street, she rents it out and has tried time and time again to get insurance but they say the house is to old. She can afford to pay for her’s to be repaired and she did but so many can’t because Insurance companies will not sell them insurance or that there income is to low. Please get your facts straight before you start putting people down.
@ molinoman
You are correct, Sir.
Many who lost their homes and all else had only the walls and roof and likely inherited that from a line of family.
Older homes do not always meet the requirements for homeowner insurance as they have not been brought up to the many changing codes that government imposes.
Even if an older home can be insured it is usually at a much higher cost than a new build of the same footage.
Instead of OUR Government sending aircraft full of money to those who hate us because we are Citizens of the USA it would do more for US if those here in the USA got some real help when we need it.
Rick Scott met in secret at NAS with the sheriff and then he ran to Tallahassee or wherever, I think that speaks volumes about his concern for OUR Escambia citizens.
Agree with molinoman, how could you make a statement like that, my mother and father at age 74 was hit and completely destroyed their house. They not able to work, living on fixed income so the had minimum insurance. At this age how can you call it a hand out, I believe these people have paid their debt to society and time to get back.
75 percent uninsured? Playing with fire…got burned.
@anne, sorry but that is a very narrow minded and self righteous view. You do realize that you must be low income to receive the help? You do realize being low income you probably can’t afford $300+ a month in home insurance?
A lot of these families need help. So don’t judge people with low incomes for not being “responsible” enough to have insurance. The state just needs to stop dragging their heels.
If 75% of the structures were uninsured, then they were paid for. It is the responsibility of the homeowner to buy insurance, not expect a hand-out when Mother Nature delivers a storm. We know the wind blows around here and the water floods and insurance is very expensive. looks to me like 6 homeowners were responsible and they are the ones able to receive assistance. That little bit of money has to go a long way!
But rest assured, every one of those that did any little thing in the bureaucracy of giving out a grant have been paid.
They got their cut even when you did not get yours.