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Tag: hurricane relief grants

Rock ‘N’ Support grant application period opens

Rock ‘N’ Support grant application period opens

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Anna Maria Island, Community News.

ANNA MARIA ISLAND – The application period for hospitality and tourism industry employees seeking $250-$500 hurricane relief grants opened on Nov. 14.

On Nov. 13, The Center of Anna Maria Island released a three-page information sheet that details the application process and eligibility requirements for the grants available to hurricane-impacted hospitality and tourism industry employees in Cortez, Anna Maria, Holmes Beach, Bradenton Beach and the Manatee County portion of Longboat Key.

Rock ‘N’ Support hurricane relief grants applications can be submitted online at The Center website.

The hurricane relief funds were generated by the Rock ‘N’ Support concert at the Bradenton Area Conven­tion Center in Palmetto on Nov. 15 with southern rock legend Lynyrd Skynyrd headlining the show and Marcus King as the opening act. All of the Rock ‘N’ Support concert proceeds will benefit hurricane-impacted hospitality and tourism employees.

Rock ‘N’ Support grant application period opens
Rock ‘N’ Support T-shirt sales were part of the fundraising efforts. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The grants are available to hospitality and tourism industry employees who were displaced by Hurricane Helene or Hurricane Milton and/or experienced lost wages, evacuation expenses, damage to their home or damage to their belongings.

Eligible employees must be employed at a business located in one of the fol­lowing zip codes: 34215 (Cortez), 34216 (Anna Maria), 34217 (Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach), 34218 (Bradenton Beach) or the Manatee County portion of 34228 (Longboat Key). To be eligible, an employee had to be employed at a business located in one of those zip codes for six months prior to Sept. 26 and hired on or before March 26.

Full-time employees who averaged more than 25 hours per week are eligible for a $500 grant. Part-time employees who averaged less than 25 hours per week are eligible for a $250 grant. The full-time/part-time deter­minations will be based on the average number of hours worked during the four weeks prior to Sept. 26.

The application form includes basic questions regarding the employee’s hire date, how their employment was impacted by the hurricanes and what hardships the hurricane-related employ­ment interruptions caused. Applicants will also be asked to upload photos or copies of their driver’s license or valid ID and copies of their pay stubs for the four weeks prior to Sept. 26.

The list of eligible food service employees includes cooks, servers, bartenders, dishwashers, hostesses, hosts and bussers. The list of eligible hotel employees includes front desk, housekeeping, maintenance, concierge and valet parking personnel. The list of eligible event industry personnel includes caterers, salespeople and operations personnel. Tour operators, including charter boat captains, watersports guides and rental support staff, are also eligible for the grants.

Applications will be reviewed in the order received. Incomplete applications will be declined and can be resubmitted. Applicants will be notified by email when their application is approved or denied.

Checks will be mailed to the address listed on the application or they can be picked up in person at the Shuckin’ Good Cause office at 6688 Cortez Road W. in Bradenton.

The grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis for as long as the Rock ‘N’ Support funds are available. The grant program will end when the funds are exhausted. Applying for a grant does not guarantee receiving a grant and applicants are encouraged to submit their applications as soon as possible.

Related coverage: Lynyrd Skynyrd lends its Rock ‘N’ Support

One month and we’re still standing

Written by Louise Bolger on . Posted in Business, Castles in the Sand.

It’s been a month since Milton disturbed our idyllic lifestyle. The hurricane came in as a strong Category 3 storm, fortunately weakening before making landfall due to an increasing wind shear as it turned northeast.

That’s not to say Milton didn’t do a lot of damage along Florida’s coastal communities, generating tornados but fortunately, no tidal surge. Anna Maria Island, which was still recovering from Hurricane Helene’s flooding, was at least spared another flood event, freeing island residents and businesses to continue the cleanup from Helene as well as tackling Milton’s damage.

There was legislation effective July 1 of this year to help keep condominiums safer from hurricanes in the form of grants to improve the stability of condominiums. Whether or not these grants can be applied for after a storm is unclear. The way I read it, the grants are for reinforcing condominium structures in the event of a storm. Nevertheless, as we all know, there will be other storms.

I mentioned this program briefly the week after the storm but here are some more details.

The My Safe Florida Condominium Pilot Program is an extension of the My Safe Florida Home program. This is designed to enhance the resilience of condominiums against hurricanes and reduce insurance costs.

The program provides licensed inspectors, grants and guidelines for hurricane mitigation projects funded by the state. The state would spend $2 for every $1 spent by eligible condominium associations for structural hurricane improvements. In addition, they will cover up to half the cost of roof-related projects and up to $1,500 per unit for doors and windows. There is a maximum grant of $175,000 available for each condo association.

To apply for a grant, an association must receive approval by a majority vote of the board of directors or a majority vote of the total voting interests of the association to participate in the pilot program. Also, the association will need a unanimous vote of all unit owners within the structure or building that is the subject of the mitigation grant. A unit owner cannot participate individually in the pilot program, and implementation of this pilot program is subject to annual legislative appropriations for grants for eligible condominium associations.

After approval, the mitigation inspection grants for eligible associations may be used for the following improvements:

• Opening protection including exterior doors, garage doors, windows and skylights;

• Reinforcing roof-to-wall connections;

• Improving the strength of roof-deck attachments; and

• Secondary water resistance for roof.

There is more information and additional details about this bill on the myfloridahouse.gov website under HB 1029. Condominium association board members and property managers should seek the advice of an attorney familiar with legislative bills to see if your association may qualify for a grant before making an application.

We’re all still getting over the post-traumatic stress disorder that many of us have from Helene and Milton, and some of us never will. Certainly, a month is too soon for a full recovery. At least the roadside debris is starting to disappear and beaches are reopening, giving us a sense of normalcy. All we can do is move forward, work towards making our properties more secure, and keep standing. This, too, shall pass.