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State disaster assistance and broadband progress highlighted by DHCD deputy secretary
Summary
Deputy Secretary Maggie Beal said DHCD is administering the Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund for damaged structures and will roll out mitigation funding for bridges and culverts; a multi-source project broke ground to add six cell towers on US-460 to improve mobile coverage.
Deputy Secretary Maggie Beal told the board that the Department of Housing and Community Development is administering the newly funded Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund, which the General Assembly approved in May. She said the program is open for applications for individual structure assistance and that counties will administer the application process so residents can access funds for damaged structures.
Beal said that within two weeks DHCD planned to roll out additional funding for bridges, culverts and mitigation projects and that the department is coordinating with the Department of Conservation and Recreation and other state partners to streamline assistance while maintaining necessary oversight. She asked local leaders to work with county administrators to ensure eligible residents can apply and cautioned that collecting locality needs takes time.
Board members also heard a report that a multi-year effort to add cell coverage broke ground: the Cumberland Plateau project aims to construct six towers along US-460 between Richlands and Grundy to close a 20-mile unserved corridor. The project was described as using stacked funding sources, with the Tobacco Commission cited as the primary funder and ARC Power and other sources also contributing; staff said most towers could be online by the end of the calendar year, though the schedule could extend into the following year.
No formal board action was requested on either topic during the meeting; staff confirmed they will continue to coordinate with county governments and partner agencies on application processes and project timelines.
