North Carolina commerce leaders want public input on how to spend $1.4 billion in federal housing recovery funds in the wake of Hurricane Helene.
Members of the public have 30 days to submit comments on the plan, which was released Tuesday by the state Department of Commerce.
鈥淗earing ideas from as many stakeholders and western North Carolina partners as possible will sharpen this proposal, positioning us to succeed with the tough recovery job ahead of us,鈥� state Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley said in a statement. 鈥淥ur team looks forward to digging into the complex details of how best to help these hard-hit communities and businesses recover.鈥�
The release of the comes after the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development last month in disaster block grants for Western North Carolina communities devastated by Helene.
Of that amount, $225 million is dedicated to the city of Asheville, which for soliciting public input on how to spend the funds.
The funds are part of HUD鈥檚 Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program.
Separately, state legislators are moving forward with a $500 million hurricane relief bill. A vote was scheduled for this week, but state House Speaker Destin Hall (R) due to the winter weather blanketing much of North Carolina. The bill is expected to come up for a vote as early as next week.
Hurricane Helene was the worst natural disaster in North Carolina鈥檚 history, with damage estimated at nearly $60 billion, the Office of State Budget and Management . Overall housing recovery needs are estimated at more than one-quarter of that amount, or $15.4 billion. The storm damaged around 73,700 homes in North Carolina.
The Office of State Budget and Management estimates that private and federal funding separate from the CDBG-DR funds will cover about $9.5 billion of the housing recovery needs, nearly $6 billion short of the total amount.
The N.C. Department of Commerce is holding for residents to voice their thoughts on the newly-released proposal, including the following events:
- Friday, Feb. 21: 10 a.m.-12 p.m., Haywood County Historic Courthouse, 2nd floor, Waynesville
- Monday, Feb. 24: 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., Office of Land of Sky Regional Council, 339 New Leicester Hwy., Suite 140, Asheville
- Tuesday, Feb. 25: 10 a.m.-12 p.m., High Country Regional Council Office, 468 New Market Blvd., Boone
- Thursday, Feb. 27: 1:30-3:30 p.m., Western Piedmont Council Office, 1880 2nd Ave. NW, Hickory
- Friday, Feb. 28: 10 a.m.-12 p.m., Centralina Regional Council Office, 10735 David Taylor Dr., Suite 250, Charlotte
Public comments can also be submitted via email at helene.recovery@commerce.nc.gov; by fax at (919) 715-0096; online at ; and by mail to North Carolina Department of Commerce, 4346 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, N.C., 27699-4301, Attention: CDBG-DR Public Comment.
