FIVE MISSOURI CITIES WILL EARN BLOCK GRANT FUNDS

Five Missouri cities, including Cape Girardeau, will receive Community Development Block Grant funding for flood recovery efforts, Gov. Mel Carnahan announced Thursday.

In addition to Cape Girardeau, the communities receiving funding are Hannibal, Maryland Heights, Rhineland and Ste. Genevieve County. Hannibal and Rhineland are the first cities to receive block grants for acquisition and relocation projects.

Cape Girardeau will receive a $105,000 grant to clear flood-damaged structures from 30 residential properties in three neighborhoods. Owners will be allowed to either sell the lots or rebuild in conformance with the local flood plain ordinance.

Ste. Genevieve County will receive a $282,000 grant to match $825,000 in federal funding. The money will be used to construct a 500,000-gallon storage tank, a new well and a water line to serve an area, which includes two major employers left without drinking water due to the flood.

"The summer floods have caused a great hardship on many Missouri communities," Carnahan said in a prepared statement issued from Jefferson City.

"The awards to Hannibal and Rhineland are just the beginning of our acquisition/relocation efforts. Several applications currently are under review and a decision should be made in the near future," he said.

A two-phase project is planned for Hannibal, which will receive a $1.5 million grant. The first phase is acquisition of damaged properties and relocation of families from the flood-damaged Bear Creek neighborhood. Cleanup is scheduled to occur during the second phase of the project, along with acquisition of some commercial and public buildings.

The community of Rhineland, which will be relocated outside the flood plain, will receive a $999,500 grant. Funds will be used to move the community of about 45 citizens to an upland ridge overlooking the old town, the governor said.

Community Development funds primarily will be used to buy property for the new town and construct the needed infrastructure. Residents will trade their old lots for lots in the new town.

A $520,000 grant will help fund reconstruction of the Howard Bend Levee in Maryland Heights. The levee protects the development in the Creve Coeur Valley, including two airports. It also protects 26 businesses and 13 homes.

Joe Driskill, Missouri's economic development director, said the state has funded 11 flood recovery projects with $4.9 million in block grants.