Tuesday, July 23, 2024
Coryell County and the City of Gatesville are both in the process of submitting applications for FEMA public assistance to help repair areas that were affected by severe storms and flooding that took place in May and June.
FEMA’s Public Assistance Program provides supplemental grants to state, tribal, territorial, and local governments that can help cover the costs of debris removal, protective measures, and restoring public infrastructure following major disasters or emergencies, according to the FEMA website.
Local leaders will apply to FEMA for possible funds that will help cover the costs of various projects following the storms. The federal assistance is split 75/25, where FEMA will pay 75% of the overall cost, and the city and county match 25%.
County
County Judge Roger Miller said the county’s Road and Bridge Department has identified approximately 141 locations of county roads and/or low water crossings that will require repairs.
“Without having everything finalized, a preliminary estimate of (the) 141 locations is $7.1 million,” Miller said.
The Road and Bridge Department has already provided some emergency and temporary repairs to some of the roads and crossings, Miller explains. By submitting the projects to FEMA, the county might receive recovery reimbursements or funding to help return the damaged roads or crossings to their original state.
“This is to repair the damage and put it back in the same condition that it was,” Miller said.
Steve Manning with Natural Resources Solutions, a consultant for the county, said the county also plans to submit at least 30 low water crossing projects that might be eligible for around $8.5 million in mitigation funding – along with the 141 locations for recovery repair. This includes adding new bridges to crossings or adding more protective measures to avoid future flood damage.
The 141 locations plus the 30 crossings will be submitted to FEMA as individual projects.
“We are going to continue to work on keeping our roads safe and in good condition, but I would anticipate that it’s going to take anywhere from 18 to 24 months before we can address all of these locations,” Miller said.
City
Interim City Manager Brad Hunt said the city is looking at multiple areas that were affected by flooding to submit for FEMA funding, including Brown Park and Faunt Le Roy Park.
“We also lost a large portion of the riverbank at Brown Park,” Hunt said. “We have completed the cleanup there and have installed more barricades to keep vehicles from driving too close to the unstable bank.”
Faunt Le Roy Park and its repairs have been a top concern for residents. After the floods in early May, the entire park and walking trail went under 10-plus feet of flowing water, Hunt explains.
“When the waters receded, we walked down the peninsula and observed the south bank had lost another 50 to 100 feet to erosion, all the way to the roadway next to the bathrooms,” he said.
While the walking trail reopened on July 9, the rest of the park will remain closed until it receives an engineer’s assessment that outlines the extent of the damage, as well as a plan to barricade the unsafe areas near the banks.
In 2018, flooding eroded the riverbank on the northeast side of the peninsula, causing it to become unsafe for cars to drive on the roadway. After that flood event, the city received a $1.3 million grant from FEMA in 2020 to repair Faunt Le Roy Park.
Hunt said the 2018 FEMA funds were allotted for several projects, the last of which was Faunt Le Roy Park.
“With the new damage this year, we will work to combine the old and new projects in order to move forward,” Hunt said. “We will seek to first repair what we can and mitigate future damage to the riverbank, then we will focus on improving river access and the park in general.”
“In summary, we recognize that Faunt Le Roy Park is an important part of Gatesville, and we believe it’s worth not only restoring as best we can, but also improving,” Hunt adds. “We appreciate everyone’s patience as we work to open as much of the park as we can, as safely as we can, as soon as we can. “
Hunt said the city will also document damages of streets at low water crossings and bridges to submit to FEMA. This includes North Lovers Lane, where they are installing a gate at the low water crossing, and Shady Lane, where the small bridge is passable but needs repairs.
“We are still evaluating other streets as well, including East Leon by Brown Park,” he said.
Hunt said the preliminary estimates for the projects will be turned in by August 6 to meet the deadline for federal and state assistance.
One month remains to apply for individual FEMA assistance
FEMA’s public assistance is separate from the individual assistance for homeowners and business owners. Coryell County residents who sustained losses from the storms and flooding between April 26 and June 5 can still apply for federal assistance for one more month. The deadline is Aug. 15, 2024.
According to FEMA, the agency has provided $176.7 million to 76,562 Texas households. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has approved $52.2 million in low-interest disaster loans to homeowners, renters, private nonprofit organizations, and businesses.
For more information about Texas disaster recovery, visit fema.gov/disaster/4781
