Latest news with #Mourey
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘Being held hostage': Hurricane Helene survivors share impact 6 months later
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) — There is desperation in St. Pete among storm victims who feel forgotten a full six months after Hurricane Helene destroyed their homes and upended their lives. Some survivors said they still can't rebuild because there is so much red tape in the way. 'We are struggling': Red Cross responds to Carolina wildfires, Helene recovery continues Half a year later, many people aren't back into their homes. Some are paying rent for an apartment and a mortgage on an uninhabitable home. Others are living in RVs in their front lawns. Carolyn Mourey in St. Petersburg is living in her garage, still waiting on a permit from the city. 'It's like we're being held hostage,' she said. 'I always thought I owned my house, and apparently I don't.' 'The government owns my house, and they tell me what I can do to it and when I can do it,' Mourey continued. 'We pay property tax, we pay insurance, we should be able to make ourselves whole and not have to wait for a bureaucracy to give us a piece of paper to do it.' News Channel 8 Reporter Nicole Rogers asked, 'If you could ask the mayor anything, what would you ask him?' 'Why is it taking so long to get these permits to us?' she responded. So we asked St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch just that. 'It's been six months since Hurricane Helene hit,' Rogers said. 'We still have a lot of people still not back into their homes waiting on permits and they want to know what's going on.' 'Well, we're doing everything that we can with permits,' Welch responded. 'We're doing very well compared to other municipalities.' 'We've added personnel, I think two from the state and six other private contractors,' he continued. 'We are doing as much as we can do (to) get those permits going through.' 'We're well over 7,000 now and we certainly empathize with folks who are still in the process,' Welch said. And with just over two months until the next hurricane season begins, some St. Pete residents like Mourey worry, will St Pete be ready? 'We're better prepared than we've ever been,' Welch said. 'We've learned from every storm, and we've learned from last year, and we will keep getting better prepared for every storm, more resilient, stronger after every storm.' Welch said that resilience can come with costly decisions. 'I won't be able to cut the millage for the first time as a mayor,' he said. 'I've cut it every year, won't be able to do it now, but we've got investments we have to make right now.' If you'd like to send Nicole a tip, you can fill out the form below. Submit a form. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘Displaced by bureaucracy': St. Pete residents frustrated over permit delays
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) — Five months since Hurricane Helene sent a deadly storm surge through many of Tampa Bay's coastal communities, St. Petersburg residents said they're still grappling with permitting delays. City leaders said they're processing permits as fast as they can. Some residents aren't buying it. 'I'm still pillar to post,' Tiffany Ellis explained. 'I have no idea when I'm going to come home.' Woodson Museum withdraws $10M ask of Pinellas County for Gas Plant project Months after Hurricane Helene hit, Ellis said she can't even begin to rebuild because of a delay in permits. 'I got one for the AC,' she said. 'I got one for the electricity.' 'They then came back and declined it and said, 'Oh, sorry, this all should have been on one permit,'' Ellis continued. She said, if you have a question about permits, your answer from city staff will depend on who you talk to. It's something she said has left her going back and forth for months. 'One of the gentlemen at the office determined that a permit from the '80s that talked about closing a porch is not the permit for that back space back there,' Ellis explained. 'Now I am faced with getting a post build permit (for) the space that I bought already apart of the house before I can even get a disaster permit opened.' News Channel 8 reporter Nicole Rogers asked Ellis, 'If city leaders are listening right now, what would you want them to hear from you?' 'I would want them to hear that their citizens can't even live where we have put in our hearts and our taxes,' she responded. 'Where we call home, we're displaced by bureaucracy and paperwork and there doesn't ever seem to be any answers.' Carolyn Mourey said she's facing similar challenges with the City of St. Petersburg. 'It's hard, and they don't see that,' Mourey said. She explained that it feels like her plea to the city is falling on deaf ears. Mourey said her general contractor applied for a permit to fix her home back on Dec. 9. 'I didn't hear from anybody until two weeks ago,' she explained. Mourey said the city asked for more information and then a week later asked for different information. Now she said she's left hoping one day she'll finally get a permit. A representative from the city of St. Petersburg sent the following statement to 8 On Your Side: Since Hurricanes Helene and Milton made landfall, the City of St. Petersburg has issued more than 7,300 permits and waived more than $1 million in permit fees to help private property owners recover. Permit applications are being processed as quickly as possible. In order to process the high volume of permit applications, the City has added additional permitting staff and is processing permit applications Monday – Saturday instead of Monday – Friday. Residents with permitting-related questions may email permits@ or call 727-893-7231. City staff will continue to work around the clock to assist private property owners with their hurricane recovery efforts. Additional hurricane recovery information can be found on the City's website here. Samantha Bequer, City of St. Petersburg 'They don't know what this does physiologically to people, looking around every day living in this,' Mourey said. 'They don't see that.' 'It's hard,' she continued. 'You don't have your neighbors; you don't have your people you want around.' 'It's emotional,' she concluded. If you'd like to send Nicole a tip, you can fill out the form below. Submit a form. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
