WASHINGTON – Senator Chuck Grassley said today that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, has awarded funds totaling $25,669,397.70 to Iowa through the Public Assistance Grant program as the state continues its recovery from severe flooding in 2008.
“Cedar Rapids has been through the ringer over the last 18 months. It’s good to see this funding come through to help our cultural landmarks and the city recover from the devastating floods,” Grassley said.
FEMA obligates the funding for the projects listed below to the state of Iowa. It’s the state’s responsibility to use these funds to reimburse eligible sub-grantees after a review process and upon receipt of appropriate documentation. The eligible sub-grantees are:
• City Hall in Cedar Rapids, $10,878,665.40 to reimburse for costs to repair the city hall to its pre-disaster condition.
• Paramount Theatre building in Cedar Rapids, $14,790,732.30 to reimburse for costs to repair the Paramount Theatre, which was added to the National Register of Historic Place in 1976, to its pre-disaster condition.
The Public Assistance Grant program provides assistance to State, Tribal and local governments, and certain types of Private Nonprofit organizations so communities can quickly respond to and recover from major disasters or emergencies declared by the President.
Thanks, in part, to the efforts of the Iowa congressional delegation, FEMA pays for 90 percent of the costs associated with the Public Assistance project shown above. The delegation sent several letters requesting the federal government take another look at the disaster level to ensure Iowa communities got the assistance they were entitled.