TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (The News Service of Florida) - More assistance is on the way for people still dealing with the aftermath of last September’s Hurricane Irma.
The state Department of Economic Opportunity announced the ‘Rebuild Florida’ program Monday, which will help low-income Floridians in all or parts of 14 counties pay for still uncompleted home repairs caused by damage from the storm.
In partnership with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, DEO will use hundreds of millions of dollars to fix or replace damaged homes and trailers, while finishing many partially repaired housing units. Priority use of the funds will go to low-income families with people over 62 years old or with children under five, as well as individuals with disabilities.
DEO Executive Director Cissy Proctor says many people are still struggling, even after insurance payouts and help from other government programs have been exhausted.
“There are still a lot of unmet needs out there, so we listened to those communities," said Proctor. "Rebuilding and replacing housing was the biggest need, so that’s what we are going to be focusing on.”
The counties eligible for funding include all of Duval along with portions of Bradford, Clay and Flagler counties in northeast Florida. In South Florida, the counties of Monroe, Broward, Collier, Lee, and Miami-Dade are eligible along with portions of DeSoto. Finally, all of Brevard, Orange, Polk and Volusia counties in Central Florida are eligible.
To see if you qualify for assistance or to sign up, visit www.RebuildFlorida.gov.
