Orange County rolls out $219M Hurricane Ian recovery programs; launches 'Orange County Recovers' homeowner aid on March 5

Orange County staff on Tuesday outlined plans to spend federal Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds allocated after Hurricanes Ian and Milton, and set a March 5 public launch date for homeowner assistance dubbed "Orange County Recovers." The county also described a compressed timetable for funding tied to Hurricane Milton.

Lede: Orange County has received $219.7 million from HUD for Hurricane Ian recovery and more than $33 million for Hurricane Milton recovery; county staff said they will begin accepting applications for the homeowner rehabilitation and reconstruction program on March 5 and estimated they could serve roughly 150'00 homes from the initial $35 million allocation.

Nut graf: County officials said the CDBG-DR funds will support housing repair and replacement, infrastructure and mitigation, and public services, and stressed the programs are subject to HUD—ompliance rules: at least 70% of funds must benefit low- and moderate-income people and at least 15% must be used for mitigation. Staff announced an online application portal and a broad outreach campaign to reach seniors, mobile-home residents and people with limited internet access.

What the board heard: Mitchell Glasser, the county—DBG-DR housing manager, led the briefing. He said Orange County nd community stakeholders developed an action plan approved by the board and the HUD grant agreement. Highlights:

- Funding totals and deadlines: Orange County warded $219,712,000 for Hurricane Ian with a grant expiration and close-out timetable that gives the county until April 2030 to expend funds. After Milton, HUD allocated $33,000,000 to Orange County but required the county to submit a separate action plan to HUD within a shortened schedule (draft by late March and final by May 21, 2025).

- Program mix and thresholds: Staff described major program buckets: homeowner housing rehabilitation and reconstruction; rental housing rehabilitation and new affordable housing; infrastructure and public facilities (street, drainage and water/sewer projects); mitigation projects; planning studies; and nonprofit-run public services. HUD rules require at least 70% of spending to benefit low- and moderate-income households and at least 15% for mitigation projects.

- Homeowner program details: Orange County is dedicating $35 million to a homeowner housing rehabilitation and reconstruction program that for the first time will explicitly cover manufactured-home (mobile-home) replacement or reconstruction on both private lots and leased lots when landowner authorization is obtained. Staff said the county will apply green and resilient building standards. Maximum award caps were presented as program limits (not guaranteed per household): up to $250,000 for rehabilitation, up to $375,000 for reconstruction, and up to $200,000 for mobile-home replacement. Glasser said staff expects to process applications through a combination of online intake and live case managers, and to hold on-site application assistance events for seniors and other hard-to-reach groups. "We're estimating between 150 to 200 [homes] in that first allocation of $35 million," Glasser said.

- Implementation: The county has hired program staff and retained Horn (consultant) to augment capacity. The county said it has prepared required policies and procedures, procurement of programmatic consultants and a public-facing website. County staff also posted two competitive Requests for Applications (RFAs) on Dec. 10 to solicit infrastructure/public-facility and mitigation proposals from county departments and municipalities; those RFAs closed Feb. 5 and evaluation committees are scoring submissions.

- Public services and nonprofits: An RFA for nonprofit-run public services funded by CDBG-DR will open in early March. Eligible service areas include self-sufficiency programs, health and mental-health services, job training and placement. Staff said the programs will be open to qualified 501(c)(3) nonprofits and that staff will hold technical assistance sessions with prospective applicants.

- Equity and access: Staff emphasized outreach to seniors, people without internet access and mobile-home residents, including on-site application help, multi-language materials (English, Spanish and Haitian Creole) and a live call center. An online application portal (OrangeCountyRecovers.com) will accept electronic applications but staff said in-person help will be available by appointment.

Milton funding and timeline: HUD llocated funds for Hurricane Milton in January 2025 under a separate action-plan process. Staff said they requested and received a 30-day extension from HUD; the county now must present a draft plan for community input in late March and final submittal to HUD by May 21, 2025. The Milton allocation will be treated as a separate grant and cannot be spent until HUD signs a grant agreement.

What residents and commissioners asked: Commissioners pressed staff on eligibility rules for mobile-home residents, whether mortgage and property-tax delinquencies disqualify applicants, and the practical timeline from application to construction. Glasser said applicants must have owned the property at the time of Hurricane Ian, be current owners and occupants, and be low- or moderate-income as defined by HUD (for a family of four the 80% AMI threshold cited was $77,200). He said mobile homes on leased lots are eligible only if landowner authorization for a replacement unit is provided. On timing, staff said they expect a multi-step process (application, inspection, environmental review, contractor procurement) that will likely take several months before construction; staff estimated many program steps will take 3-4 months.

Next steps: The homeowner portal and branding "Orange County Recovers" go live March 5 with the online intake, a press release and outreach events. Staff will continue evaluating infrastructure/pf RFAs and to present infrastructure recommendations to the board in May. The Milton action-plan development and public-comment schedule is compressed and staff said it will return to the board with a draft for public comment and final presentation prior to HUD submittal.

Ending: County staff said the program is intentionally broad: "We want to reach the hardest-hit and hardest-to-reach residents," said project manager Sherry Julian, adding that the county will use caseworkers and community events to connect applicants to the program. The launch on March 5 will mark the first major enrollment opportunity for homeowners seeking federal repair or replacement funds tied to Hurricane Ian damage.