Resilient SRQ replaces home damaged during Hurricane Ian, dozens more to follow

Resilient SRQ helping those impacted by Hurricane Ian

Kimberly Kuizon reports.

SARASOTA, Fla. - Before Hurricanes Helene and Milton, there was Hurricane Ian. Now, nearly three years after that storm tore apart Diane Flanagan's home in Venice, a new beginning finally took shape.

Resilient SRQ through Sarasota County is replacing her mobile home, and it's the first one replaced through the program with dozens more than will follow.

READ: Sarasota parks continue recovery six months after Hurricanes Helene, Milton

Local perspective:

What once brought heartache, now makes the retired school teacher smile.

"I’m very, very, very happy. Very happy," Flanagan said. "I can’t begin to express how thrilled I am and thankful."

Her home since 2013 at Japanese Gardens mobile home park in Venice is being demolished after Hurricane Ian brought devastating impacts in September 2022.

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"When I first came and walked I was falling in holes in the floor," Flanagan said. "My windows all broke under the carport. And the rain came in. I didn’t have flooding and then the roof and water intrusion in the walls."

She was able to raise a glass with friends and toast to "new beginnings" Monday morning. Resilient SRQ is replacing her former home with a 3-bedroom, 2-bath brand-new mobile home.

"The name is what it is. That’s why we chose it. We are not just putting the community back to where it once was. We are making it better and making it more resilient," said Steve Hyatt, the division manager for the Management Division of Sarasota County.

Big picture view:

Sarasota County’s Resilient Housing Recovery Program received $55 million from HUD with $40 million being used for home rehabilitation, reconstruction and replacement. The other $15 million will be used for reimbursements for homeowners who made repairs out-of-pocket.

MORE: 2025 Atlantic hurricane season brings elevated risk of major landfalls, experts predict

Seventy homes, including mobile homes and single-family homes, will be replaced through Resilient SRQ.

"They won’t have to worry about if things are met up to the code or if the contractor pulled a permit," said Tammy Owens, the housing recovery project manager. "We are doing everything by the book, so the homeowners will be in a really good place when we leave them."

It makes for an even brighter day for Flanagan. Replacing not only a home, but the memories of what happened not so long ago.

What they're saying:

"I wasn’t expecting to get what I’m getting," Flanagan said. "I was hoping for a little help, but to be in a new home that’s built for more hurricane-resistance standards is just so comforting because the next one could have blown it away completely."

What's next:

Sarasota County residents who faced damage during the 2024 hurricane season will soon be able to apply for help through Resilient SRQ. For more information, visit www.resilientsrq.net.

The Source: The information in this story was gathered through interviews with Venice resident Diane Flanagan, Steve Hyatt, the division manager for the Management Division of Sarasota County, and Tammy Owens, the housing recovery project manager.

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