Frustration is mounting over Cass County's flood buyout process, and one county commissioner said Thursday that he's less optimistic than he was a month ago about the chances for large-scale buyouts.
So far, only 10 of the 107 flood-insured homes on the county's application list for federal Flood Mitigation Assistance would qualify under the cost-benefit ratio formula, County Engineer Keith Berndt told the county's Flood Buyout Program Committee.
The county has hired California-based consultant Ken Goettel and is working with a Federal Emergency Management Agency official in Bismarck to see what can be done to boost the number of buyout-eligible homes.
Heritage Hills resident Craig Strehlow accused county officials of giving homeowners false optimism about their chances for a buyout.
Strehlow, whose house had 1½ feet of water on the main floor this spring, said county officials aren't giving homeowners a clear enough picture of what they should do.
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"One of you should step up to the plate and say, 'Hey, almost nobody is going to qualify, so let's be honest about it and move on with your lives and fix your homes and get your neighborhoods put back together,' " he said.
Berndt and County Commissioner Ken Pawluk said it would be easy just to submit the application and walk away, but the county isn't giving up on trying to secure eligibility for as many homes as possible.
Still, Pawluk said he is not optimistic.
"If I had to make a decision, if I was borderline, I myself would be inclined to fix up my home and try to protect it," he said. "The problem is you may go through all that effort and then have the opportunity to participate in a buyout down the road."
Irv Rustad, director of Lake Agassiz Regional Council, which is coordinating the county's buyout process, said only homes with main floors below the 10-year flood elevation appear to be eligible under the FEMA formula.
Ten homes on the county's list meet the criteria: seven in Oxbow, one in the Northwood subdivision and one each in the Harwood and Horace areas, Rustad said, cautioning that even those aren't sure bets for buyouts.
Most homes on the county's list are in the 50- to 100-year flood elevation.
Berndt said the consultant will look at whether other methodologies can be used to give more homes a positive cost-benefit ratio.
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At the request of homeowners, officials said they would post a list on the county's Web site showing how each of the 107 properties fared in FEMA's cost-benefit analysis. Rustad said the list is preliminary, and the information is subject to change.
Berndt said he expects to have the buyout application ready for the first group of homes within days. The county has been told to expect an answer within 60 days, he said.
