Gov. Paterson Commits $15 Million to Flood Relief

Recently, New York Gov. David A. Paterson and Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) Commissioner Deborah VanAmerongen announced issuance of a request for proposals (RFP) to the New York State Housing Trust Corporation (HTFC) that would give homeowners the opportunity to relocate from areas vulnerable to flooding. Eligible counties in the Southern Tier and Catskill regions may submit proposals under which they would receive state funding to purchase and demolish eligible homes that have been damaged by floods since April 1, 2004, and are determined to be at future risk.

This request for proposals is a result of action taken by Gov. Paterson and legislative leaders, who announced on April 11 that the Enacted Budget includes $15 million for the Greater Catskills Flood Remediation Program.

"Over the last four years, nine flood events occurred in New York State that resulted in major federal disaster declarations," said Governor Paterson. "It's critical that we help people out of these flood zones so that they can begin rebuilding their lives. The government can then work to revive these areas and protect neighborhoods from future flood damage. We look forward to receiving proposals from eligible counties and moving forward with the process of building new homes for those families who have endured significant flood damage."

"Families in these flood-prone areas need to be spared from further hardship. We're looking forward to getting this funding out to counties so that they can identify homes at future risk and make it possible for families to relocate to safer areas," Commissioner Deborah VanAmerongen said.

This initiative will have many positive benefits for New York State. Most importantly, the program will help to remove people and possessions from harm's way in areas that have been hit particularly hard by flooding in recent years. It will also allow for the restoration of flood plains that have been cut off from streams and rivers. Restoring flood plains has the effect of limiting downstream flooding. Finally, the flood remediation program will rebuild prime habitat areas such as wetlands and riparian buffers for aquatic and semi-aquatic species. Among other benefits, wetlands play an important role in flood control, acting like sponges for surface water during heavy rains.

In order to qualify for the program, a home must be the primary residence of the owner with a family income up to 150% of the Area Median Income, as defined by HUD. To make the process of identifying eligible homeowners easier for counties, DHCR has included county-specific income verification forms as part of the RFP. Homes purchased would be condemned and property dedicated for open space, recreational, wetlands, or flood mitigation purposes.

Funding will be administered through the NYS Housing Trust Fund Corporation / Division of Housing and Community Renewal to the following counties: Broome, Chenango, Delaware, Herkimer, Montgomery, Orange, Otsego, Schoharie, Sullivan, Tioga, and Ulster.