Friday morning Katrina roundup
- HUD is further extending its HOPE VI "Main Street" grant application deadline for applicants in the hurricane-affected areas.
- The HUD press release with the central disaster housing hotline number, 1-888-297-8685, is now fully readable under today's date. This after several days' odd dithering (see here and here).
- Congress has approved $51.8 billion for relief, is looking at more.
- FEMA has more announcements on housing recovery contracts: not just Shaw Group (see below) but Fluor, Bechtel, CH2M Hill, and Dewberry Technologies. Again, anyone who can fill us in on these companies, especially the less widely known ones, please do use the comments space below.
- FEMA is warning against disaster-related fraud, and provides a number to call, 1-800-323-8603, to check on any fishy-seeming persons claiming to be property inspectors.
- CLPHA is asking Housing Authority of New Orleans employees to check in and is posting numbers to be called by "HANO Residents (or Housing Authorities housing HANO residents)."
- The National Multi Housing Council site continues to provide new information, currently including a summary of NMHC and National Apartment Association relief efforts, a description of the two groups' current lobbying efforts, updated advice on renting to hurricane victims, and a link to its own copy of a FEMA press release explaining this business of the $2,000 debit cards. If you can't get the NMHC copy of the document to open, this is FEMA's copy. But FEMA also has a more recent release saying, "...These expedited assistance payments are flowing out to individuals through electronic funds transfer to bank accounts and through mailed checks," so go figure. [UPDATE: The NYT has more on the debit card situation. .... LATE FRIDAY: OK, the debit cards are off.]
- The LA Times (free registration required to view) reports many public housing authorities are jumping hurricane victims over the people on their local waiting lists, but "... local housing authorities have not yet received additional funds to help with evacuees, and HUD has not issued temporary Section 8 housing vouchers, as it did after the Northridge earthquake."
- USDA awarded $27 million in Rural Development funds on Wednesday. This was for the whole country, not disaster-specific, but every amount helps of course.
[UPDATE: More small items, late Friday:
- VA apparently still deciding if it will release foreclosed homes for the flood recovery effort as HUD has done.
- Poverty activists in San Francisco (perhaps elsewhere too?) are upset over local authorities saying they have "vacant" public housing units available for Gulf Coast hurricane victims. The activists say local homeless families have been trying to get into those units for years.]
- The HUD press release with the central disaster housing hotline number, 1-888-297-8685, is now fully readable under today's date. This after several days' odd dithering (see here and here).
- Congress has approved $51.8 billion for relief, is looking at more.
- FEMA has more announcements on housing recovery contracts: not just Shaw Group (see below) but Fluor, Bechtel, CH2M Hill, and Dewberry Technologies. Again, anyone who can fill us in on these companies, especially the less widely known ones, please do use the comments space below.
- FEMA is warning against disaster-related fraud, and provides a number to call, 1-800-323-8603, to check on any fishy-seeming persons claiming to be property inspectors.
- CLPHA is asking Housing Authority of New Orleans employees to check in and is posting numbers to be called by "HANO Residents (or Housing Authorities housing HANO residents)."
- The National Multi Housing Council site continues to provide new information, currently including a summary of NMHC and National Apartment Association relief efforts, a description of the two groups' current lobbying efforts, updated advice on renting to hurricane victims, and a link to its own copy of a FEMA press release explaining this business of the $2,000 debit cards. If you can't get the NMHC copy of the document to open, this is FEMA's copy. But FEMA also has a more recent release saying, "...These expedited assistance payments are flowing out to individuals through electronic funds transfer to bank accounts and through mailed checks," so go figure. [UPDATE: The NYT has more on the debit card situation. .... LATE FRIDAY: OK, the debit cards are off.]
- The LA Times (free registration required to view) reports many public housing authorities are jumping hurricane victims over the people on their local waiting lists, but "... local housing authorities have not yet received additional funds to help with evacuees, and HUD has not issued temporary Section 8 housing vouchers, as it did after the Northridge earthquake."
- USDA awarded $27 million in Rural Development funds on Wednesday. This was for the whole country, not disaster-specific, but every amount helps of course.
[UPDATE: More small items, late Friday:
- VA apparently still deciding if it will release foreclosed homes for the flood recovery effort as HUD has done.
- Poverty activists in San Francisco (perhaps elsewhere too?) are upset over local authorities saying they have "vacant" public housing units available for Gulf Coast hurricane victims. The activists say local homeless families have been trying to get into those units for years.]
posted by Martha Bridegam at 10:19 AM
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