Grants Do Exist That May Prevent Another Condominium Tragedy
It was a tragic scene that filled our television screens some two-and-a-half years ago. Many were shocked on June 24, 2021, when the Champlain Towers South, a 12-story 136-unit beachfront condominium in Surfside, Fla., partially collapsed, killing 98 people and injuring many others. It is one of the deadliest structural disasters in American history, and one can be sure that those currently living in condominiums across the country are now wondering if something can be done to ensure the same fate doesn’t occur at their own residence.
As a matter of fact, there is. A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report issued this week points out that the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Hazard Mitigation Grant program can be used to increase the disaster resilience of condominiums. Such grants are intended to reduce or eliminate long-term risk to people and property from future disasters. Applicants determine which projects to submit to FEMA for funding consideration based on the amount of funding available and their hazard mitigation priorities. FEMA officials told GAO that three Hazardous Mitigation grants have been used to increase the resilience of condominiums since the 1990s.
The report also explains that Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program funds are intended to help communities plan for and implement sustainable cost-effective measures designed to reduce the risk to individuals and property from future natural hazards, while also reducing reliance on federal funding for future disasters. Eligible activities include mitigation projects, hazard mitigation planning and grant management costs. To increase the resilience of condominiums, communities have applied for BRIC grants for condominium earthquake seismic retrofits to strengthen buildings and for flood prevention measures.
In addition, FEMA’s Flood Mitigation Assistance Grant funds can be used for projects that reduce or eliminate the risk of repetitive flood damage to buildings insured by the federally managed National Flood Insurance Program. This program has been used by communities to elevate condominium buildings and install water pump stations designed to evacuate stormwater runoff from rain events.
While these grant programs can be used to increase the disaster resilience of condominiums, these are generally not the kind of projects that state and local governments prioritize when they apply for assistance, the GAO report points out. When prioritizing projects, applicants must consider the benefit-cost of a project, how the project will improve resilience for a community, and how a project will decrease disaster risk for a community, among other things. To further complicate matters, condominium mitigation projects are often more complicated because they require the approval of the condominium’s homeowners association and potentially all of the property owners within the condominium.
While the potential for adding condominium resilience to an applicant’s menu of hazard mitigation projects may not be at the top of the list, at least there is a venue available to address such a concern. And who knows, maybe the funding going to a condominium under one of these programs will ultimately help prevent another tragedy similar to that in Sunrise in June 2021.
Join us for our following Thompson Grants events:
2024 Virtual Federal Grants Forum| Feb. 21-22, 2024 | Virtual Event
Thompson Grants Workshop: Indirect Costs| March 14, 2024 | Virtual Event
