Kenosha County will receive $756,000 in Community Development Block Grant-Emergency Assistance Program funding for disaster recovery activities related to the July floods, County Executive Jim Kreuser announced today.
These funds will be used to complete rehabilitation of housing affected by flooding. The objective is to deliver strategic and timely assistance to low-to-moderate-income households in Kenosha County.
County officials learned of the award in a letter received this week from the Wisconsin Department of Administration. Columbia County, which administers Wisconsin’s Southern Housing Region CDBG program, was the grant applicant on behalf of Kenosha County.
“This grant is great news for Kenosha County residents who are still cleaning up after the unprecedented flooding that hit parts of our area earlier this year,” Kreuser said. “We’re grateful to the state, and to Columbia County for being our partners on this. I look forward to seeing these funds go to good use in our communities that were hit hardest by the floods.”
More details on the award and how it will be implemented are expected soon from MSA Professional Services, the grant administration firm contracted by the Southern Housing Region. The award total is $869,400, roughly $113,000 of which will cover MSA’s costs of administering the grant.
Meantime, Kenosha County Emergency Management Director Lt. Horace Staples noted that other resources remain available for flood survivors. These include low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration.
SBA loans are available to cover damage to businesses and homes. The deadline for Kenosha County residents and business owners to apply is Jan. 12, 2018. That deadline was extended recently after neighboring Lake County, Ill., received a disaster declaration from the SBA – an action that also applies to all contiguous counties.
Those interested in an SBA loan may apply online at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela. Applications may also be downloaded at www.sba.gov/disaster or requested by phone at 800-659-2955 (800-877-8339 for the hearing impaired) or by email at disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.