It’s been a month since Milton disturbed our idyllic lifestyle. The hurricane came in as a strong Category 3 storm, fortunately weakening before making landfall due to an increasing wind shear as it turned northeast.
That’s not to say Milton didn’t do a lot of damage along Florida’s coastal communities, generating tornados but fortunately, no tidal surge. Anna Maria Island, which was still recovering from Hurricane Helene’s flooding, was at least spared another flood event, freeing island residents and businesses to continue the cleanup from Helene as well as tackling Milton’s damage.
There was legislation effective July 1 of this year to help keep condominiums safer from hurricanes in the form of grants to improve the stability of condominiums. Whether or not these grants can be applied for after a storm is unclear. The way I read it, the grants are for reinforcing condominium structures in the event of a storm. Nevertheless, as we all know, there will be other storms.
I mentioned this program briefly the week after the storm but here are some more details.
The My Safe Florida Condominium Pilot Program is an extension of the My Safe Florida Home program. This is designed to enhance the resilience of condominiums against hurricanes and reduce insurance costs.
The program provides licensed inspectors, grants and guidelines for hurricane mitigation projects funded by the state. The state would spend $2 for every $1 spent by eligible condominium associations for structural hurricane improvements. In addition, they will cover up to half the cost of roof-related projects and up to $1,500 per unit for doors and windows. There is a maximum grant of $175,000 available for each condo association.
To apply for a grant, an association must receive approval by a majority vote of the board of directors or a majority vote of the total voting interests of the association to participate in the pilot program. Also, the association will need a unanimous vote of all unit owners within the structure or building that is the subject of the mitigation grant. A unit owner cannot participate individually in the pilot program, and implementation of this pilot program is subject to annual legislative appropriations for grants for eligible condominium associations.
After approval, the mitigation inspection grants for eligible associations may be used for the following improvements:
• Opening protection including exterior doors, garage doors, windows and skylights;
• Reinforcing roof-to-wall connections;
• Improving the strength of roof-deck attachments; and
• Secondary water resistance for roof.
There is more information and additional details about this bill on the myfloridahouse.gov website under HB 1029. Condominium association board members and property managers should seek the advice of an attorney familiar with legislative bills to see if your association may qualify for a grant before making an application.
We’re all still getting over the post-traumatic stress disorder that many of us have from Helene and Milton, and some of us never will. Certainly, a month is too soon for a full recovery. At least the roadside debris is starting to disappear and beaches are reopening, giving us a sense of normalcy. All we can do is move forward, work towards making our properties more secure, and keep standing. This, too, shall pass.
