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City officials describe voluntary buyouts for flood-prone Ken*ett* Drive area; two properties moving to appraisal
Summary
Fire and Rescue Emergency Preparedness staff updated residents on voluntary buyouts funded by post-disaster grants. Two homes have awards and will be appraised; acquired lots would be restricted as open space under federal rules and typically left as grass or parkland.
Noah Ray of the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department’s Emergency Preparedness Division updated District 10 residents on voluntary buyout programs for repeatedly flooded homes in the Ken*et/ Kennet* Drive area.
Ray said the city used post-disaster grant funding to award buyouts for two properties and that appraisals and purchase scheduling will begin soon. A third property was delayed but remains expected to move forward, he said. He described voluntary buyouts as “a last resort for homeowners who flood constantly” and said the programs are voluntary, not mandatory.
After acquisition, Ray said federally funded buyout lots carry open-space restrictions under grant rules: no paving and — except in some large areas — no permanent buildings other than potentially a restroom. He said the usual post-acquisition treatment is to seed lots with grass or leave trees/shrubbery in place to improve stormwater absorption and reduce neighborhood flooding.
Residents at the meeting asked whether the city could spend large-scale funds on drainage infrastructure rather than buyouts. City staff said a large program described by residents (an earlier referenced $5 million effort) had not gone forward in the same form; officials pointed residents toward the city’s Resilience Jacksonville plan and the recently staffed Office of Resilience as the venue for broader, multi-step flood mitigation and green-infrastructure work.
Ray and council staff said additional outreach and local meetings would be scheduled, and emphasized that buyouts are intended to reduce repeated flood losses and return land to open-space use, not to create sites for new development.
Ending: Two buyouts are moving toward appraisal and acquisition, a third remains pending. The city said it will follow up with residents about broader resilience planning and further community meetings.
