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County to use MEMA/FEMA hazard‑mitigation grant to raise historic Piney Point house
Summary
St. Mary's County approved a memorandum of agreement and hold‑harmless agreement with MEMA to accept a hazard mitigation grant to elevate a historic residence at 16678 Piney Point Road; FEMA will provide $69,600 and the property owner will provide a 25% match of $23,200 for a $92,800 project.
St. Mary's County commissioners on Aug. 6 approved a memorandum of agreement with the Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) and a hold‑harmless agreement to accept hazard mitigation grant funding to elevate a private historic house at 16678 Piney Point Road.
The project is funded primarily by FEMA/MEMA hazard mitigation grant dollars: $69,600 from FEMA/MEMA plus a required 25 percent property‑owner match of $23,200, for a total project cost of $92,800. County staff said the project was identified in the county's 2011 multi‑jurisdictional hazard mitigation plan, a prerequisite for eligibility for hazard mitigation funding.
George E. Erickson, director of the county's Department of Public Works and Transportation, described the house as a late 19th‑century residence formerly associated with the Potomac Hotel and said the Maryland Historic Trust has reviewed it and noted its historic significance but that the property is not subject to a historic trust easement. "This particular owner's been trying for several years, to raise the money," Erickson said, and after earlier efforts they qualified for the MEMA/FEMA program this year.
Erickson told the commissioners the planned work will lift the house about 4 feet above the flood elevation used for the design (grant documents allow raising up to 12 feet when justified), re‑route and elevate utilities, add fill and a foundation and set the house back on a new foundation. He said the county will bid the elevation work to qualified contractors and that the county's role is project management; there are no county capital funds included in the award. County staff also verified the property owner maintains flood insurance and the owner's match must be in place before grant funds are released.
Commissioners discussed whether stilt construction or higher elevations would be advisable; staff said grants allow elevations up to 12 feet and that further changes would consider ADA access and other code issues.
Commissioner Cynthia L. Jones moved to approve the MOA, the hold‑harmless and to establish project US1401 in the county budget for $92,800 fully funded from non‑county sources; Commissioner Todd B. Morgan seconded the motion. The board voted in favor with no recorded opposition.
County staff said the work is intended to reduce repeated flooding damage to the property and that the historic house will revert to the owner's control once the elevation work is complete. Staff also said the elevation may help preserve the building's historic character by reducing recurrent flood damage.
