The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season is predicted to be busy, but for residents of St. Pete and
other coastal communities, the memories from Helene and Milton remain at the forefront.
Despite some well-intentioned efforts by cities and the Florida Department of Emergency
Management (DEM), there are simply not enough resources allocated to help “make whole” the
tens of thousands whose homes flooded. Many are carrying two mortgages, or a mortgage and
rent payment, are still waiting for building permits, and may have been denied funding from the
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) or the new Elevate Florida program. Just as
importantly, cities lack the strategic, long-term development plans to ensure future resiliency.

Timing is critical and the state should have an annual hurricane trust fund

Following Hurricane Ian in 2022, the Legislature called a special session and immediately
supported recovery to the tune of $750 million. Victims of the 2024 storms are still waiting,with
no indication that funds will be allocated. Particularly as the federal government signals changes
to FEMA, the State should develop a separate “rainy day fund” that can be immediately
allocated following storms and go towards rebuilding costs. $1 billion would be a good starting
point – less than 1% of the state’s annual budget.

State should support cities with permitting staff

Following disasters, staffing levels, particularly for permitting and recovery, are insufficient to
meet increased demand. To address this, the State should consider overseeing a network of
state-level employees or approved contractors who can be trained in local codes and
ordinances and immediately deployed to affected municipalities. This will reduce the need for
local governments to overstaff and ensure faster processing of permits.

Resources should go to those that need it most

Just this week, hopeful residents across Tampa Bay and the state learned that their applications
to Elevate Florida were denied. With a pool of nearly 12,000 applicants and funding for only
about 2,000, the odds weren’t great. But, despite publicly listing that applicants with repetitive
flood losses would be given highest priority, neighbors in areas like Shore Acres with multiple
flooding traumas were denied. The DEM must ensure that those most recently impacted will be
helped first while in the critical stage of deciding to elevate, rebuild, or move. If those in low-lying
areas have to move, they should be offered competitive buy-out packages so they can relocate
to higher, safer areas.

Policies must support appropriate redevelopment

Despite many proactive and needed policies in the 2025 Emergencies bill (SB 180), like better
oversight of construction cranes and disaster debris disposal sites, policies that handcuff local governments in being more resilient need to be modified. While I appreciate the desire to get
people back in their homes quickly, language that prevents cities from implementing policies
that are “more restrictive or burdensome” for developers – a term undefined in the legislation –
opens the door for re-development in places that will likely flood again.

Cities must have community-backed rebuilding plans

Finally, cities must have hard, but necessary, conversations with residents and businesses
about what their community should look like decades into the future. We need true resilience
plans that include areas for home elevation, infrastructure improvements, and flood mitigation in
the form of stormwater retention or greenspace. Corporate developers are already offering the
bare minimum to homeowners that have no other option and can’t face the trauma of another
flood. To maintain the character of neighborhoods and the safety of residents, plans must
provide a blueprint of how different rebuilding techniques work together, to support the area as a
whole and make the best use of limited resources. This will require true listening and sustained
collaboration between community members and local governments.

Hurricanes are not going away, nor is the comfort in having avoided “the big one.” It’s time for
every city to schedule public meetings, develop local policies and redevelopment plans, and
commit real resources to long-term solutions. Tallahassee must support these efforts with its
own resources, state-level coordination, and a preference for resilience over convenience.