The city of Fort Lauderdale is providing assistance for those hit hardest by historic flooding in the area several years ago.
Rain pummeled Fort Lauderdale in April of 2023, and the resulting floods shut down the city’s airport and closed schools. The city and larger Broward County both issued states of emergency, as residents in some areas were forced to wade through knee-high water.
According to an education session hosted by the city, more than 1,100 homes were damaged in the “historic flooding,” including 766 that incurred major flood damage. Fort Lauderdale is “preparing to launch housing assistance programs and infrastructure initiatives” funded through the federal Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Program (CDBG-DR) to “support recovery efforts following the April 2023 flood event.”
The HUD designated Fort Lauderdale as “Most Impacted and Distressed,” and granted over $88.05 million to recovery efforts — the city has allocated some funding to an “Individual Housing Program” (IHP) that is intended to “support homeowners to repair or reconstruct their homes.”
Programs could include support for home rehabilitation and reconstruction, the elevation of homes, reimbursement for “eligible flood-relate expenses,” and other recovery and mitigation activities.