NEW SYMRNA BEACH, Fla. – The City of New Smyrna Beach will be elevating nine homes in flood-prone areas to avoid damage.
As part of the FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, the single-family homes will be elevated above the 100-year floodplain, according to a news release.
The homes being elevated include three homes on Goodwin Avenue, three on Sunset Drive, and three homes between Osceola Avenue and 2nd Avenue in Central Beach.
“The selection process is time-consuming, and relies upon the interest of the property owner,” said New Smyrna Beach city engineer Kyle Fegley.
[TRENDING: 17-year-old found shot to death in Orange County | Palm Bay councilman Pete Filiberto accused of DUI, carrying cocaine in shoe | Brevard community rallies behind family whose son played in Super Bowl | Become a News 6 Insider]
Through the grant, FEMA will pay for 75% of the home repairs, with the remaining cost being split between the city and the homeowner, the release said.
“I’m just excited to see this happen. It’s been 5 years for me. I feel like I’m part of the family as they’re putting these houses up. I’m so excited,” Fegley said.
The grant is a big relief for Amanda Prokop and her family of four. Her waterfront home is one of nine in New Smyrna Beach’s flood-prone areas in the process of being elevated by 8 feet. Prokop said the repairs should be done by mid-June—after she and her family saw four floods in five years.
Prokop said it’s about $70,000 out of pocket.
“It’s cheaper than repetitively flooding so we’ll find a way to make it work,” she said. “This is just a relief to know that we won’t flood again.”
Prokop showed us what the inside of her home looked like after Hurricane Ian. Most of her furniture was destroyed and her hallways looked more like a river.
She told News 6 that during Ian, the water levels got as high as 4 feet inside of her home. She lost everything, and that’s why she said getting her home elevated right now means the world to her.
For more information on applying for the grant, county officials will host a public meeting at the Emergency Operations Center in Daytona Beach, Feb. 22.
To learn more, you can contact Kyle Fegley at kfegley@cityofnsb.com or call him at 386-410-2835.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: