by Caroline Gabsewics and
Mike Sharkey
Staff Writers
It is nearly impossible to find an organization that isn’t doing something to help the people of the Gulf Coast region who were affected by Hurricane Katrina.
Whether it’s taking donations of tangible goods and loading them onto corporate-sponsored semi-trucks or collecting cash for the American Red Cross, everyone and every group seems to be doing something to help the people of Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana.
The local real estate and builders associations are no different.
“We had a special meeting of our board of directors and it was decided we are donating $20,000 out of our operating funds to the Florida Association of Realtors Disaster Relief fund,” said Melanie Green of the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors. “Our charity foundation is donating an additional $30,000 to bring our total to $50,000.”
The Florida Association of Realtors has announced that it plans to donate $150,000 (one-third of that is coming from NEFAR) to the three hardest-hit real estate associations in the Gulf Coast region.
Green said NEFAR also raised money and contributed funds to those affected by the four hurricanes that hit the state of Florida last year.
“These are the kinds of things we typically do when there are disasters,” said Green, adding that NEFAR is working with many different organizations to help folks right away. “We are trying to meet their immediate needs. We are not that worried about three months down the road. We certainly may end up with some permanent residents.”
The organization also is using its vast resources to find housing for victims of Hurricane Katrina who have made their way to the Jacksonville area. Todd Smith, owner of Blue Horizon Real Estate working to see that the hurricane victims have a place to stay and clothes on their backs.
“I have two rental properties at the moment and two more that I am trying to get access to,” said Smith, who had people from the New Orleans area staying with him all weekend. “I am working with other people I know to build an inventory of properties. Also, local charity groups are setting up temporary shelters where they are available and we are looking for furniture that can be donated.”
Smith has set up a website, www.jaxforno.com.
“It details the basic information such as how to list a house that you may be willing to donate to a family or how to search for houses that are available,” said Smith, explaining that he is following some of the same procedures he normally would when renting out a property, but at the same time he understands the desperation the hurricane has caused. “We are relaxing some of the rules. Most of these people have been staying in hotels for over a week now and they are out of money. They are at the end of their rope. I am asking people to either donate their property or offer it at a reduced rate.”
Smith said he is working with a NEFAR attorney to create a document that allows property owners to offer their housing for free for a limited time while assuring their temporary tenants understand that at some point — perhaps six months, he said — the tenants will have to either start paying rent or return to their area of the country. Smith said he’s hoping that money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency will help offset some of the lost revenue associated with providing free rent for hurricane victims. However, getting FEMA money may prove to be a trick for many who need it.
“FEMA can’t give anyone any money until they inspect the home for damage,” said Smith. “Many of those homes are completely gone. There’s going to be a lot of government red tape.”
In addition to working with local charities to obtain furniture and other items, Smith said he and state Rep. Tony Hill are working with JEA to coordinate a plan that would provide hurricane victims with free utilities.
“We want to help them get back some sort of semblance of normalcy,” said Smith. “We also want to make them feel at home.”
The Northeast Florida Builders Association is looking further down the road to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
On Sept. 2 NEFBA sent out an e-mail to its members asking if anyone had any job openings for those who are in the construction business.
“We called out to the members of the Northeast Florida Builders Association to see if they can help those in that area who have been affected by the hurricane,” said Bryan Lendry, president of Northeast Florida Builders Association. “We asked them, ‘Are you looking for people to do work?’ ”
Since Friday NEFBA has received a list of 300 job positions from area builders, developers and designers. Lendry said they are looking for everything from painters to plumbers to electricians.
“People are used to working,” he said. “We want to help families the best we can.”
Lendry said they are calling this Members Helping Members.
“If a plumber says he needs five plumbers we will get the word out to them in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama,” he said. “They can come to Jacksonville for employment for a short period of time or longer.”
Bill Wilson, executive director of Builders Care, is traveling to the areas hit by Hurricane Katrina this week to let those know about job openings in the Jacksonville area.
“As people can see, it’s going to be a long time before things get back to normal,” said Lendry. “Members have already donated on their own and now we’re not working on the immediate needs like food, water and temporary shelter, but what will help with the next cycle is (filling) the need of jobs and stability.”