Monroe County Residents are Invited to Participate in the Voluntary Home Buyout Program

MONROE COUNTY, FL – The State of Florida allocated $15 million to Monroe County through the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Voluntary Home Buyout Program. The voluntary program was created to encourage risk reduction through the purchase of residential property in high flood-risk areas impacted by Hurricane Irma. Property owners in unincorporated Monroe County who wish to sell their homes are encouraged to participate, especially if they were damaged by Hurricane Irma and are still in need of repair.

Priority properties are in low- and moderate-income areas and eligibility requirements must be met to apply. Once acquired, any existing structures will be demolished and the property will be used for permanent open space, passive recreation, or to restore natural floodplain functions indefinitely.

A public hearing will be held regarding the proposed registration period for new participants on Wednesday, October 20, at 1:30 p.m. at the regularly scheduled Board of County Commissioners meeting at the Monroe County Government Center, Marathon.

Additional program details can be found at www.monroecounty-fl.gov/homebuyout. Following the public hearing an application period will open. Interested parties will be able to fill out the Monroe County Voluntary Home Buyout Sign Up Form on the website after the Oct. 22 meeting. For more information, contact Cynthia Guerra at 305-453-8756 or email buyouts@monroecounty-fl.gov.