Coalition marks 5th anniversary of flood resilience law
SAFETY HARBOR — The American Flood Coalition has commemorated the five-year anniversary of Florida’s landmark ‘Always Ready’ flood resilience legislation, signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis in 2021, with site visits to two projects in the Tampa Bay region.
“With the passage of the ‘Always Ready’ legislation in 2021, Florida became a national leader in flood resilience, and the projects that have been funded over the last five years thanks to the Resilient Florida program it established are allowing communities across the state—both coastal and inland—to mitigate increased flooding risks, helping to protect lives, property and the systems Floridians depend on every day,” said Kate Wesner, Florida director of AFC.
Wesner joined local Largo officials for a tour of the completed Sanitary Sewer Lift Station 47 and 41 Elevation Project. The project received $1.25 million from the Resilient Florida grant program, with an additional $1.25 million matched by the city of Largo, and included raising the lift station concrete slab area and control panels by 3.25 feet above the existing grade elevation, installing a waterproof hatch to protect key equipment, adding a backup generator to ensure continued operation during power outages, and constructing a 10.4-foot vertical reinforced concrete wall to enclose both the station and generator and bring the total elevation to 15.4 feet.
Wesner also joined Stacey Day and Nicole Maloney from the Pinellas County Division of Environmental Management for a tour of a second project in the Tampa Bay region funded through the Resilient Florida program — the Philippe Park Living Shoreline Wave Attenuation project. The project, which received $129,200 in funding from the state, created a living shoreline at Philippe Park to increase resiliency to storm surge and sea level rise, create wildlife habitat, and provide demonstration and education on coastal resiliency. Specifically, the project is a series of oyster reef wave attenuation barriers (WABs), comprised of precast concrete reef domes, to reduce erosion and enhance habitat. The project was completed in September 2024.
Pinellas Recovers celebrates first mobile home replacement
The Pinellas Recovers program team joined Lealman homeowner Richard Brill on July 9, to celebrate the first mobile home replacement supported by the county’s federal disaster recovery grant.
Hurricane Milton severely damaged Brill’s 1964 mobile home. Through the program, the mobile home was fully replaced with a new Wind Zone 3-rated manufactured home, the highest wind-resistance rating for manufactured homes, designed to withstand sustained winds of up to 110 mph.
Pinellas Recovers has approved more than $49 million in assistance to over 650 individuals and families, with thousands of additional applications currently under review.
The online application, along with information on income qualifications and required documents, is available at recover.pinellas.gov.
Individuals can also apply in-person Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. at:
2600 McCormick Drive, Suite 100, Clearwater
5000 Park Street, Suite 4, St. Petersburg
Deadline nears for hurricane recovery programs
Pinellas County residents affected by hurricanes Idalia, Helene and Milton have until July 31 to apply for the county’s Homebuyer Assistance Program and Disaster Relief Reimbursement Program for Renters.
The programs are two of five launched by the county as part of its People First Hurricane Recovery initiative, which uses federal disaster recovery funding to help residents still struggling in the aftermath of the 2023 and 2024 hurricane seasons.
Applications for the People First Homeowner and Landlord Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Program, Homeowner Reimbursement Program and Disaster Relief Reimbursement Program for Homeowners will remain open.
More than 600 households have been approved for assistance, and thousands of applications are currently under review across all five programs.
To learn more, or to apply, visit https://tinyurl.com/muj92h8t.