Hurricane Helene: Housing Recovery and Mitigation Funding

S.C. Office of Resilience to Hold Public Meetings

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced South Carolina will receive more than $150 million in Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds to support long-term recovery efforts following Hurricane Helene.

“These flexible grants help cities, counties, Indian tribes, and states recover from Presidentially declared disasters, especially in low-income areas, subject to availability of supplemental appropriations,” according to HUD. “Since CDBG-DR assistance may fund a broad range of recovery activities, HUD can help communities and neighborhoods that otherwise might not recover due to limited resources.”

The South Carolina Office of Resilience (SCOR) is seeking public input on the HUD-required Action Plan, which outlines how the funds will be used to address disaster-caused unmet needs. Eligible activities under the draft plan include single-family home rehabilitation, replacement and reconstruction, affordable rental housing rehabilitation, voluntary buyouts, and mitigation projects to lessen the impact of future disasters.

In addition to submitting comments and questions online or by mail, the SCOR team will hold multiple public meetings in areas that Hurricane Helene impacted. The meetings will include an an overview of the Draft Action Plan will, and SCOR representatives will welcome comments and questions from attendees. All comments and questions will be documented, addressed, and reported to HUD when SCOR submits the Action Plan for review in late June.

Public Meeting Schedule

Aiken County

5:30- 7:30 p.m., May 27

Aiken County Government Center
1930 University Pkwy, Aiken, SC 29801

Spartanburg County

6-8 p.m., June 3

Spartanburg Community College Tyger River Campus, Multi-Purpose Room 354
875 E. Main Street, Duncan, SC 29334

Greenville County

6-8 p.m., June 3

Greenville Water Community Room
517 W Washington Street, Greenville, SC 29601

Anderson County

6-8 p.m. June 10

Westside Community Center
1100 W Franklin Street, Anderson, SC 29624

Orangeburg County

6-8 p.m.

Orangeburg County Conference Center
1643 Russell Street, Orangeburg, SC 29115

Greenwood County

6-8 p.m. June 12

Greenwood Performing Arts Center
120 Main Street, Greenwood, SC 29646

All meetings are open to the public, and citizens may attend at any location regardless of whether they live in that county. For additional information concerning the program, or if you require special meeting accommodations, please contact SCOR at (803) 413-3213 or media@scor.sc.gov.

An additional public meeting will be held in North Augusta to discuss State of South Carolina Hurricane Helene Disaster Recovery & Resilience Program Coordination with our local partners. It will be held from 2-4 p.m. May 27 at the American Legion Post 71, 333 E. Spring Grove Ave, North Augusta, SC 29841.