State Sen. Danny Britt Jr., at the podium, speaks Thursday to members of the public, county officials and legislators during a Joint Legislative Emergency Management Oversight Committee meeting held in the Robeson County Administration Center.

State Sen. Danny Britt Jr., at the podium, speaks Thursday to members of the public, county officials and legislators during a Joint Legislative Emergency Management Oversight Committee meeting held in the Robeson County Administration Center.

<p>Some lawmakers and others gathered in the Robeson County Administration Center Thursday to discuss disaster recovery efforts during a Joint Legislative Emergency Management Oversight Committee meeting.</p>

Some lawmakers and others gathered in the Robeson County Administration Center Thursday to discuss disaster recovery efforts during a Joint Legislative Emergency Management Oversight Committee meeting.

LUMBERTON — Legislators and state officials discussed updates Thursday on disaster recovery projects in the county and funding included in the 2021 state budget for more.

A Joint Legislative Emergency Management Oversight Committee meeting Thursday brought together public officials, members of the public, and state representatives to discuss funding and progress in efforts to recover from hurricanes Matthew and Florence. The meeting took place in the Robeson County Administration Center.

State Sen. Danny Britt said some people are still displaced from their homes following hurricane damages, and recovery is still occurring.

“We know it’s an ongoing issue,” Britt said.

Disaster recovery

Mark White, of the Fiscal Research Division at the N.C. General Assembly, said funding is in the state budget to help address disaster recovery.

“This budget had a new emphasis on long-term planning and flood mitigation,” he said.

The budget appropriated $411.8 million in State Emergency Response and Disaster Relief Funds for disaster recovery, he said. Also included was $10 million in a Multifamily Affordable Housing Project in Robeson County.

Funding was appropriated for various “new grants, new programs, and directly funded projects,” he said.

ReBuild NC

Laura Hogshead, COO of the North Carolina Office of Recovery and Resiliency, gave updates on ReBuild NC’s efforts to help county residents recover their homes after the hurricane damage wreaked by Matthew in 2016 and Florence in 2018.

Hogshead said applications are open for hurricane survivors at rebuild.nc.gov. Offices like the Lumberton ReBuild N.C. Center remain closed because of COVID-19 precautions.

“As of today, there are 4,324 applicants seeking assistance, of which 1,145 are in or through the construction process,” according to Hogshead’s presentation Thursday concerning the statewide number. There were 708 projects completed, she said of the Homeowner Recovery Program.

There were 2,152 applications in the county and 596 awards sent, she said. There also is $45.9 million in funds committed.

In Robeson County, NCORR invested in projects like 210 housing units and 12 infrastructure projects through Community Development Block Grant-Recovery Program funds, she said.

Heir properties can be substantial issues in the process, Hogshead said.

“It really is dependent on whether you’re current on your property taxes,” she said.

Sometimes the county will not issue permits for construction if someone’s name is not on the property. Case managers work with people to help them with needed documentation. The obstacle of “not being able to prove ownership of the home” also contributes to “barriers” in the process.

Contractors

“How many of the contractors are yet to be paid on some of those houses that are completed already?” Britt asked referring to NCORR.

Britt said he has been contacted by contractors who have projects that are 98% complete who have not received payment.

“First, I would love to know who is saying they haven’t been paid ‘cause we do payment at 30%. We do an inspection at 30% completion and we payout; an inspection at 50% completion and we payout and inspection at 100% and we payout,” she said.

“So if they’re at 98, they need to get to 100 that’s the contract they signed. But, they should have gotten paid out at 30% and at 50%,” Hogshead said.

It is difficult to get a general contractor to work on a state or federal contract to agree to those terms, she said.

Supply availability and cost contributes to delays.

“We have to contract for a certain price. So if the general contractor is coming in and saying I will do these 10 mobile homes, these 10 manufactured housing units for x price. If the price skyrockets in between us signing the contract and them putting it in the ground, they eat that (cost) and so that has caused a lot of general contractors to shy away from the program,” she said.

“We’re exploring ways to get around that, but frankly, our — our hands are a little bit tied because of the procurement rules,” she added.

Greg Brayboy, project manager for G & N Construction, said it is an honor to be part of the program.

“The concern we have is the timeframe for funding once we initiate the moveout and then process the 50%,” he said.

The company has the manpower to help address the need, but it needs to know the timeframe so it can prepare for upcoming projects, Brayboy said.

“For an example, we had a moveout on Jan. 11. The house is pretty much completed. We still haven’t received our 50%,” he added.

Hogshead said the program is looking for a vendor to process payments to help address such delays in funding. She thanked him for communicating the issue.

Through the Housing Opportunities and Prevention of Evictions Program, Hogshead said she has learned that using a contractor or vendor for payments has sped the process up for releasing funding.

Public comments

Adrian Lowery, executive director of the Lumberton Housing Authority, said NCORR has helped his agency a lot in its recovery efforts since Hurricane Matthew.

“We have 729 public housing units. Matthew was very devastating. We lost 267 of our units,” he said.

As of Thursday, LHA still had 170 units that are not able to be leased out because of conditions, he said.

The housing authority received CDBG funding and is in the process of rehabbing a building for its administrative office, Lowery said. The location is at the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Second Street.

It also is in the process of building 72 units, he added.

“This has been a very disheartening process but when NCORR was created and Ms. Laura came on, her staff has come into the community and they have been very beneficial to us,” he added.

Marguirite Morton said she has reached out for help in rehabbing her home, and someone agreed to help, but no help has come.

“My beautiful home is ruined,” she said.

She said she had a bad experience at the ReBuild Center.

Sen. Britt said he would speak with her and help her in the process.

Tim Heath, of Red Springs, also asked if once a homeowner signs off on documentation if the only warranty only lasts for 1 year.

“So after that one-year warranty are there any options that would go back and repair any damages?” he said.

“So after it is just a one year warranty. This is a six-year grant program from HUD and so all of the homes need to be closed out within that period. So that’s why the warranty is for one year. We make sure that everything that the general contractor has done was done properly and if not, it is addressed during that one-year period but after that there is no option for an extension,” Hogshead said.

Heath said some people who had homes with garages or porches don’t have that with the rebuilt homes.

Hogshead said there are 24 home plans to choose from.

“Because these are federal funds, they only deal with the living space of the home. They don’t deal with outbuildings or garages,” she said.

Reach Jessica Horne at 910-416-5165 or via email at [email protected].