Assistance for Hurricane Recovery: Three Grant Offices Unveiled on the Gulf Coast
In an effort to facilitate the recovery process from the devastating impacts of the 2020 Hurricanes Sally and Zeta, the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) has rolled out an essential initiative known as the Home Recovery Alabama Program. This crucial program has been devised to extend financial assistance to homeowners and landlords who endured property damage during these catastrophic weather events.
Through funding obtained from the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery, a program run by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Home Recovery Alabama Program is in a position to offer grants. These grants are specifically intended for the repair, reconstruction, or even total replacement of single-family homes that were marred by the wrath of the storms.
To ensure that potential beneficiaries have ample opportunities to apply for the funding, four intake centers have been set up across Alabama. In Foley, the center can be found at 200 East Laurel Ave. (U.S. 98). There are also additional centers located in Mobile, Jackson, and Selma. For the convenience of applicants, these centers will operate from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Prospective applicants can refer to www.HomeRecoveryAL.com for detailed information on eligibility criteria and required documentation for the application. There is also the convenient option of downloading the Alabama Home Recovery app from either the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store. For those who prefer human interaction or need additional clarification, they can simply call (251) 265-7958 to acquire more information.
In order to foster inclusivity, the program has been designed to cater to low-to-moderate-income homeowners and landlords possessing rental properties in the nine counties that were hardest hit by the 2020 hurricanes. These counties include Baldwin, Mobile, Clarke, Dallas, Escambia, Marengo, Perry, Washington, and Wilcox. To be considered for the program, homeowners and landlords must have owned the property when the hurricanes made landfall in the fall of 2020 and they should still retain ownership.
Kenneth Boswell, the ADECA Director, explained that the primary goal of the program is to aid those who are yet to recover fully from the impacts of Hurricanes Sally and Zeta due to the financial constraints. It’s noteworthy that, in the previous year, HUD and Congress allocated a whopping $501 million in funding to Alabama to aid with unresolved hurricane recovery requirements. A significant portion, $280 million, has been allocated to the Home Recovery Alabama Program. Out of this, $42 million has been specifically reserved for rental properties and $238 million is earmarked for low-income homeowners. The rest of the funds will be channeled towards projects outside of single-family housing, which may encompass infrastructure development, housing, economic growth initiatives, and future disaster mitigation.
A key highlight of the Home Recovery Alabama Program is that the financial aid provided is a grant, not a loan. This implies that recipients are not required to repay these funds, provided they adhere to the terms of the grant and the program rules. The main intention behind these grants is to enable beneficiaries to repair any storm damage that remains unaddressed.
