MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. — In the year since Hurricane Debby, neighbors across the Tampa Bay Area have been rebuilding their homes and lives.
Tina Borling has had a front row seat to the changing landscape of her neighborhood in Manatee County.
Watch full report from Mary O'Connell
“When we first moved here, we loved everything about it,” said Borling. “The nice big piece of property. The neighbors across the way were cows."
She's lived in her home off Jim Davis Road in Parrish for 22 years. In those two decades, Borling also witnessed the devastation from Hurricane Debby.
“The water came in fast, from no water in the driveway or on the property to within five hours…starting to come into our home. Probably within an hour after that, we had 18 inches in our home,” she said.
ABC Action News visited neighbors on her street last year after Debby inundated some areas with water.
365 days later, families are building back.
"It's emotional because we've had neighbors that've been here on this road for many years that are moving away because of the storm, and I'm very close to one of them that are moving away, and it's just very hard,” she said.
Manatee County officials said last year’s hurricanes served as a reminder of how quickly and severely storms can impact the community, noting that they learned important lessons about the resource deployment, clearer communication with at-risk residents, and more resilient infrastructure.
County officials said that they've taken several steps to strengthen emergency preparedness and protect lives and property.
Leaders said with additional stream gauges and flood monitoring sensors now in place across the county, they can track water levels in real time and respond faster to flooding threats.
Officials also said more than 204 miles of stormwater canals and creeks are being cleared of blockages and buildup, especially in areas that experienced flooding last year.
"It was very tough, and we're still recovering,” said Borling.
Neighbors are recovering, yet they’re resilient and ready for whatever a new storm season brings.
“God has a plan for us, for all of us, and I know that we'll be fine this year,” said Borling.
“You know, it might just be time we take a look if HOAs are really even necessary.
Maybe we should just do away with homeowner associations as a whole.”
South Florida lawmaker Rep. Juan Carlos Porras (R-Miami) says it may be time to do away with homeowners associations altogether, as more Floridians speak out about rising fees, costly lawsuits, and even arrests tied to HOA disputes. He said this week that he is considering filing legislation in the next session that would abolish HOAs statewide.
