GRAND LAKE — Trevor and Deana Kelley are no strangers to the headache of home repairs. They’ve had to deal with the aftermath of two major hurricanes since moving to their Grand Lake home in 2004 to pastor Grand Lake Apostolic Church, and they’ve come to dislike the arduous process.
But their latest — and most drastic — round of home repairs has been a completely different experience. This time, they don’t have to lift a finger or pay a dime, and afterward their home will be virtually floodproof.
The Kelleys are one of 35 Cameron Parish families whose homes are being raised above base flood elevation via the Cameron Parish Hazard Mitigation Grant, a $6 million project funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Ryan Bourriaque, Cameron Parish administrator, said 40 homes qualified for the grant but that only 35 accepted. Each home had been hit by at least two major hurricanes in the past 10 years and been deemed a “severe repetitive loss” property.
He said FEMA, which manages the National Flood Insurance Program, organized the grant to prevent claims from being filed again and again on the same flood-endangered properties. FEMA determined that paying to have homes elevated would save it money in the long run.
“This is mainly centered around greater savings to the fund,” Bourriaque said.
Although participation was voluntary — the homes had been grandfathered in and weren’t required to be at base flood elevation — those who didn’t participate would pay a much higher flood insurance premium than they would if elevated, Bourriaque said.
He said that 13 of the 35 homes have been elevated so far. Each home costs about $150,000 to elevate, and the Kelleys’ cost about $185,000. The higher cost is partly due to the installation of an elevator for their 6-year-old son, Zachary.
Zachary has a rare bone disease, type three osteogenesis imperfecta, that has left him unable to walk and highly susceptible to injury. His mother, Deana, said that having the elevator will allow him to get upstairs safely and easily.
“I don’t know how we would have done it without an elevator,” Deana said. “It’s really making it way more possible for us to do this.”
Deana said her family could not have afforded to elevate their home if not for the grant, but would have had to accept occasional flooding as a fact of life.
She said the contractor, Davie Shoring, has been timely and communicative, lifting the home 4 feet in just three weeks. She said in about a week the house will be lifted the rest of the 9 feet.
“It’s a very good program for people who don’t want to flood again, no doubt,” Deana said. “But it’s also a good program because it’s very organized, and you can feel confident that what they say is going to happen.”
Trevor said he’s “very happy” and “thankful” for the opportunity.
“We feel blessed to have this opportunity,” Deana said. “It’s one of those things that only God can make happen.”
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