Bay County was severely impacted by Category Five Hurricane Michael in October of 2018. One of the first firms hired by the County was The Integrity Group. We were tasked to provide staffing to support and lead the Bay County Long-Term Recovery Task Force. The Task Force was comprised of officials from all municipalities and the School District. Integrity’s focus was on the development of our Long-term Recovery Plan which was used to support the successful pursuit of FEMA and HUD CDBG-DR funding which totaled over $800 million across the County. This funding included FEMA PA; FEMA Mitigation (406 & 404); and HUD CDBG-DR Infrastructure and Mitigation. The Integrity Team worked very closely with local officials and staff on the development of the plan and ensured full compliance with the myriad HUD and State regulations.
In full compliance with the FEMA National Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF) and HUD guidelines our team worked with six major branches: Health & Social Services (including schools), Infrastructure, Economic Development, Housing, Natural & Cultural Resources and Planning & Capacity. The project included the participation of more than eight hundred residents, business leaders, and other stakeholders who participated in 250 public meetings, special research sessions, and open discussions. Additionally, many hundreds of residents participated via a special recovery website and social media.
This very successful project resulted in a “model” Long-term Recovery Plan that resulted in numerous accolades from Federal and State agencies. And, more importantly than the $300 million mentioned above, this effort resulted in total funding into Bay County (including private investment) totaling nearly $2 billion.
