Dear HMGP,
I thought I knew you. Apparently I did not. You had to have Brandon Wade and Jeff Ward tell me the truth last night because you couldn't do it yourself.
From what I understand, you and your new lady, FEMA, are all hopped up on statistics and probability. You provide no glimmer of hope to help us elevate our homes.
What I do know is that I've found someone new - Sterling Patrick and his Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program. They seem to really have a lot going for them. I think, for those of us in historic homes, we and you, HMGP, should make a clean break and move on. Good luck with your buy-outs since I see now that's really all you were interested in from the start.
-Historic Galveston homeowner
So, if you couldn't tell by the above letter, last night's meeting proved useless for MANY (hopefully there are some homeowners out there that can qualify and best of luck to you!) of us to use the HMGP to elevate our homes. FEMA seems to be set on only shelling out the big $$s if they see our area as flood-prone (like if our homes flooded every 5 years or every time it rains) and if they can make it worth their while. Since IKE was such a unique storm, FEMA is likely to not see us as a "worthwhile" investment of their elevating dollars.
Fine. Luckily, there is another hope: federal funding through the Community Development Block Grant program. Ah, another acronym to try and remember and learn about... No worries - we will stay on top of CDBG issues and post them here. Please stay tuned!
PS. Even though its "not bloody likely" that we (East Enders) will qualify for the HMGP, we are still encouraged to apply - doesn't hurt to ask, right? Call the public works dept at (409) 762-8873 - ALL APPLICATIONS ARE DUE MARCH 13th.
Well done. I must say though, I've been all hopped up on statistics and probability once or twice (or three times) in my day. Took a while. But I'm clean now. Damn you stats and probablies (street lingo)!!! DAMN YOU!!!!!