Boulder County's home buyout costs and related expenses for acquiring the 12 properties — whose estimated values total more than $8.6 million — are expected to total more than $9.3 million.
That includes anticipated closing costs and the demolition of existing structures on the properties, as well as what Boulder County already has spent on appraisals, title searches, environmental assessments, and attorneys' and staffers' time.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency will pay 75 percent of that total $9.3 million expense, more than $6.99 million, through its Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. The state will pay 12.5 percent, or about $1.17 million.
Boulder County's local share of the total home buyout costs for the 12 properties is about $1.17 million.
But county officials said they hope to cover most or all of that local expense with funding from another source of federal flood response money, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program.
Abby Shannon, the long-range planning manager in Boulder County's Land Use Department, said the county hasn't come up with specific plans for what it might do with the properties once they're purchased.
She said FEMA's restrictions in its federally funded home buyout Hazard Mitigation Grant Program will prevent Boulder County or any future owner from building new homes or other substantial structures on the 12 properties once the county acquires them, though.
The flood-damaged properties are among more than 30 whose owners have agreed to sell to the county through the FEMA program, after those owners concluded that rebuilding wasn't an option or wasn't a good option, county officials have said.
The 12 represent those FEMA has approved, Shannon said.
The county may buy more residential properties in the future — depending on FEMA's determination of their eligibility, and on the availability of federal and state funds, county officials have said.
County officials have emphasized that the home buyout program is voluntary, and no one can be forced to sell their flood-damaged properties to the county.
Once purchased, however, the homes will be removed and the land must remain in its natural state. The offering prices were based on pre-flood market values as determined by independent and state-certified real estate appraisers.
Shannon reported to the county commissioners Tuesday that the closings on the purchases of the 12 properties may take another couple of months.
———
©2015 the Daily Times-Call (Longmont, Colo.)
Visit the Daily Times-Call (Longmont, Colo.) at www.timescall.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
