Plymouth Eligible for up to $200,000 in Flood Relief

The city of Plymouth, Ind. is eligible for up to $200,000 in federal money to buy and raze properties in designated flood plains within the city.

The money will come from a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

“Last week was a good but very unfortunate example of the need for this,” Plymouth Mayor Mark Senter said Monday at a news conference announcing the grant. “The goal here is to avoid a similar emergency situation in any future floods.”

City officials assesed damage from flooding on the Yellow River last week and organized the cleanup of affected areas around the city, 23 miles south of South Bend.

U.S. Rep. Joe Donnelly, D-Ind., said the program to move properties out of flood plains will be voluntary.

“No one who doesn’t want to leave will be forced from their homes,” he said. “This is not eminent domain.”

Brent Martin of Plymouth, who helped with the grant application, said the approval was the first step in a long-planned drive to buy and remove buildings in flood-prone areas of the city of 11,000.
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Information from: South Bend Tribune,
http://www.southbendtribune.com