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NEW ORLEANS — Road Home applicants who initially requested funds to elevate their homes may soon receive funding. While the initial application contained over 55,000 flood prone properties, the first four properties with the federal share of $120,000 have been approved.

The entire project could potentially fund eligible mitigation actions for these 55,000 flood prone properties and individual mitigation measures with the total federal share contribution of over $1 billion. The project will be funded in batches once properties are identified and determined eligible by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

FEMA and the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP) have coordinated efforts in the development of the State Office of Community Development’s (OCD) Hazard Mitigation Grants Program (HMGP) project to elevate or reconstruct eligible structures in order to comply with local floodplain ordinances.

"Funding these elevations and pilot reconstructions is an integral part of protecting structures from future damages caused by disasters," said Jim Stark, FEMA’s director of the Louisiana Transitional Recovery Office. "We are proud to have worked closely with the Hazard Mitigation staff at GOHSEP and other state partners at OCD and the Louisiana Recovery Authority (LRA) to award these initial projects. This is a step in the right direction to get money into the hands of the homeowners."

These projects are the result of a substantive ongoing, cooperative effort on the part of FEMA, GOHSEP, OCD and the LRA to develop a mechanism to deliver funding to eligible property owners. This was complicated due to differing requirements for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Road Home money and FEMA’s requirements for eligibility for Hazard Mitigation Grants.

"OCD strongly believes that individual mitigation measures and elevations of homes are vital for the state’s future. This is a good first step to making that process happen," said Michael Spletto, Senior Housing Manager of the Disaster Recovery Unit, Office of Community Development.

OCD has requested HMGP funds to help homeowners receive up to $30,000 to elevate their homes and up to $7,500 for individual mitigation measures for their properties. This project will address repetitive flood problems in Louisiana and significantly reduce risk to public health and safety.