Cape city seeks buyout grant to demolish two flood-damaged houses

Two flood-prone, vacant rental houses would be bought and demolished if the city of Cape Girardeau receives a federal grant, city officials said Wednesday.

The vacant structures are located on the city's northeast side at 1207 N. Main St. and 1003 N. Fountain St.

It is the latest effort by city government to remove structures that were heavily damaged from Mississippi River flooding two years ago.

City officials have been pursuing a grant ever since the New Year's flood in 2016.

Last October, Missouri's State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) notified city staff that the city could move forward with submitting a full grant application.

City manager Scott Meyer said SEMA's authorization makes it likely the city will receive a Hazard Mitigation grant.

The application deadline is March 1. City officials said they don't know when the grant might be awarded.

City officials initially had sought funding to remove three structures, but on Monday the Cape Girardeau Council authorized the staff to seek funding for two of the structures.

City building and code enforcement manager Anna Kangas said in an agenda report to the council that the owner of a vacant structure at 1217 N. Water St. has been "nonresponsive" to the city's efforts and has not agreed to the buyout.

Flooding heavily damaged all three structures, she said.

Structures, such as these, are considered to have sustained damage of 50 percent or more, must be elevated in an effort to keep them from being inundated by future floods, relocated out of the floodplain or demolished, Kangas said.

Once demolished, the land can be used as public space such as parks, city officials said.

Kangas said it would cost nearly $85,000 to buy the two properties and pay for asbestos abatement, demolition and grading.

Under the grant program, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) would pay 75 percent of the cost with the city paying the remainder, Kangas said in an agenda report to the council.

The city would pay $21,200 of the cost, with the local share coming from money set aside by the city for building condemnations, she said.

Over the past 20-plus years, the buyout program has led to demolition of most of the city's flood-damaged houses, according to city officials.

In the Red Star neighborhood, vacant lots encompass some 18 acres. City officials have discussed turning the public land into a neighborhood park.

Kangas said the Main Street property could become a part of such a park.

The Fountain Street property is farther west, but is located in a low-lying area that floods, she said.

Once the two structures on Main and Fountain streets are razed, only three houses that would meet buyout requirements will remain in the 100-year floodplain, Kangas said. The Water Street house is one of those three. The other two houses are on South Sprigg Street, she said.

That doesn't mean other structures are not affected by flooding, but those structures have not suffered heavy damage in past floods, Kangas said.

City officials estimated flooding in 2016 damaged some 20 homes and eight businesses.

Flood buyout efforts in Cape Girardeau began after major Mississippi River flooding occurred in 1993 and 1995.

Since then, more than 100 structures have been removed from Cape Girardeau's floodplain, according to an online report from FEMA and regarding the buyout program in Missouri.

City manager Scott Meyer said the buyouts have been "an effective tool" to address flooding. Buyouts have reduced the city's costs of fighting floods, he said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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