ST. PETE, Fla. — The City of St. Petersburg will soon begin accepting applications for those seeking part of a nearly $160 million grant recently awarded to St. Pete from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
St. Pete homeowners who were hit by Hurricane Idalia in 2023 and Hurricane Helene in 2024 and meet the program income requirements could qualify. Aubrey Phillips, Strategic Initiatives and Grants Director for the City of St. Pete, says the guidelines for who is eligible are set by HUD not the city.
For this program, those who make 80% or less of the Area Median Income can apply. That’s roughly $83,450 for a family of 4.
At this time, homeowners solely affected by Hurricane Milton are not eligible.
“The city has contacted HUD to seek clarification and guidance about how we can handle that given that the storms were so close together,” Phillips said. “Many residents were impacted by both storms. So we’re awaiting that guidance and if we are allowed to serve residents only impacted by Milton, we’ll do that.”
The program called Sunrise St. Pete will hold two webinars Wednesday for those who want to learn more about obtaining funds. Sessions are offered at noon at 5:30 p.m. on November 5.
“It’s been just over a year since the storm hit but people are still recovering,” Phillips explained. “Whether its they made the repairs but they really took a hit financially because of that, or if they haven’t even been able to make repairs, they can get help with that.”
Phillips said once the application period opens in a couple of weeks, residents can apply online or work directly with one of their case workers.
Financial help is available for repairs, rebuilding, or elevating homes if repair work hasn’t been done yet. Homeowners can also apply to be reimbursed up to $50,000 for repairs already completed if they were fully permitted and code compliant. The funding can also be use for disaster relief payments to help residents with rent, mortgage, and utilities.
Liane Jamason sold her home in Shore Acres after it was flooded during Hurricane Helene. She feels there’s too much red tape in the process of getting residents the help they really need.
“I just think it’s too little too late,” she said. “It’s been 14 months since the hurricanes and 24 months since Idalia. People have forgotten we had another hurricane before that. It’s like where have these funds been? A lot of people have had to make very difficult decisions or sell our homes because there was no money available.”
Phillips says HUD has guidelines on the order in which applications will be prioritized.