TAMPA, Fla. (WFTS) — Hillsborough County homeowners still struggling to recover from Hurricanes Helene and Milton will soon have access to a new pool of relief funds.
On Monday, April 20, Hillsborough County launched a call center for its Rebuilding for Tomorrow program. The county is dedicating $211 million to the Homeowner Repair and Reconstruction Program to help residents repair or rebuild their homes.
Watch report from Jada Williams
The money is part of a larger $709 million Community Development Block Grant for Disaster Recovery awarded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
I have been speaking with people in Tampa's hard-hit Forest Hills neighborhood since the storms hit about a year and a half ago. Even today, many homes are still under construction.
Patricia Rodriguez's home flooded during Hurricane Milton.
"It totally sucked," Rodriguez said.
"Had to redo drywall, redo floors, screen porch, fence, bathroom. It's still being done. They just finished my bathroom," Rodriguez said.
Homeowners' insurance was not enough to cover the damage.
"The city of Tampa is giving us some money," Rodriguez said.
Now, the county is stepping in to offer additional help. Starting April 20, residents can call (813) 540-7767 to learn more about the assistance program.
Audrey Ziegler, Social Services Department Director for Hillsborough County, said the call center is a tool to help homeowners prepare ahead of submitting applications on May 1.
"We wanted to make sure that the information was available to residents, and if they had questions, concerns, maybe wanted to help a neighbor or family member that the call center would be open," Ziegler said.
"We just feel like our launch on May 1st will be more successful, and people will feel more armed, more at ease with having the information, collecting their eligibility documents, understanding what the program can do, can't do," Ziegler said.
The program has proven to be necessary.
"We've already had almost 60 residents reach out to us for assistance. We also have quite a few people that called prior to opening and left a voicemail message, so we've called almost 15, 20 residents back to give them information," Ziegler said.
Despite being a year and a half removed from the storms, the need is still evident across the county.
"I was just driving through Plant City today. There are still a lot of homes that are uninhabitable," Ziegler said. "We're hearing from residents who are not able to live in their entire dwelling, they're living out of one room because the other areas are not habitable," Ziegler said.
Other residents explained how hard it has been to come across assistance.
"We're hearing from concerned neighbors saying, my neighbors have applied for so many programs, and now they're not willing to apply for another program because they weren't eligible, and they've just lost hope in what can be done for their residents," Ziegler said.
Any Hillsborough County homeowner with damage from Hurricane Milton or Helene can qualify, including residents of Tampa, Temple Terrace, and Plant City.
Applicants must own the home, reside in the home, or be temporarily displaced due to the hurricane, and have their property taxes paid.
"We'll be making sure that they own the home, that their property taxes are paid for. If not, we can probably look at some options to help alleviate the tax burden ahead of application," Ziegler said.
Applicants must earn up to 120% of the area median income, with priority going to homeowners making 80% or less.
"We'll be looking at household income over the past several months. Maybe their tax return is the easiest way to determine eligibility without so many source documents," Ziegler said.
The county is offering up to $350,000 to replace or rebuild storm-damaged housing, or up to $150,000 for repairs not covered under other programs.
"The unique part about our program is we also are launching part of the program to assist residents who did complete some of the damage already," Ziegler said. "If they worked with a contractor, with different skill sets,and had the work permitted, and paid for that work themselves, or even got a loan, we may be able to reimburse them for up to $50,000 of that work."
The remaining funds from the $709 million HUD grant will go toward repairing infrastructure such as roads, canals, culverts, and pump stations, as well as projects to improve the area's resilience to future storms.
"We want people to trust the program, trust the process, they'll be in good hands. Customer service will be second to none. We've simplified eligibility as much as the grant will allow," Ziegler said.
Residents can start submitting applications on May 1. An in-person assistance center will also open that day.
Homeowners can reach the call center at (813) 540-7767 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. In May, hours will expand to Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
More information available here
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