Hurricane Harvey Recovery – Where we are today

Deacon Mark Arnold (left) and Randy Allard, from the Sulzer Group, evaluating contractors for temporary shelters. Deacon Arnold heads the project management team.

Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic
 

---

When Hurricane Harvey made landfall as a Category 4 Hurricane on Aug. 25, 2017, it wreaked costly havoc along the Gulf Coast, including the Diocese of Corpus Christi. By preliminary numbers, Hurricane Harvey is considered to be the most expensive FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) declared event in the United States. 

Disaster Relief Coordinator for the Diocese of Corpus Christi, Deacon Mark Arnold said, “just in the diocese alone, there is an estimated $35 million in damages to 300 diocesan buildings. We’re talking schools, churches, parish halls, convents, rectories and offices and more that need to be repaired or rebuilt,” he said. 

Initially, the diocese was going to manage its recovery efforts by best utilizing the insurance dollars provided by Catholic Mutual (its insurance carrier), but Deacon Arnold and the Diocese Chief Fiscal Officer, Greg Seagrave, performed some research on the FEMA Public Assistance (PA) program and quickly learned that there could be significant benefits to filing and pursuing a claim for disaster recovery grants.

The PA grants program is a very detailed process that takes specific knowledge and expertise to navigate. To assist with this process, the diocese has engaged a project management firm, the Sulzer Group, to work directly with FEMA and the Texas Department of Emergency Management (TDEM) to develop the disaster recovery grants. Team members Randy Allard and Stanton Vignes have been working side by side with Deacon Arnold on a daily basis. 

“The diocese doesn’t have the manpower, resources or the expertise to handle a claim of this size,” Vignes said. “I don’t think there’s a Catholic diocese in the U.S. that does.”

In short, the diocese must follow strict guidelines and provide considerable amounts of documentation to be deemed eligible for the repair or replacement of the 300 buildings affected. Once eligible, FEMA transfers the funds earmarked for the diocese to the State of Texas, who then manages the grants proceeds and issues reimbursements when costs are incurred. According to Vignes, this is a reimbursement program. 

Stanton Vignes (left) from the Sulzer Group and Orlando Zepeda, the diocesan construction manager, work together evaluating contractors for the temporary shelters. Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic

“FEMA doesn’t just write a check and say here you go, now you can go spend it,” Vignes said. “You have to incur costs, then request reimbursement from the State of Texas, who ultimately issues the check.”  Each FEMA disaster has what is called the Applicant Cost Share, which is expressed as a percentage of the grant amount that is the financial responsibility of the grant recipient. For Hurricane Harvey, the Cost Share is 10%, so FEMA will be providing 90% of the costs incurred for recovery.

On January 23, 2018, the diocese’s Request for Public Assistance was approved by FEMA and TDEM. In previous FEMA disasters, “houses of worship” were not considered eligible for FEMA funding. However, for the first time in a presidentially declared disaster the Trump Administration and Congress passed legislation making “houses of worship” eligible for reimbursement. “This is great news and opens up a whole new avenue for disaster relief for our parishes,” said Deacon Arnold. “While this may generate a larger more complex claim for the diocese, it will also create a greater opportunity for our recovery efforts.” 

Deacon Arnold heads the team, consisting of himself, the Sulzer Group and Orlando Zepeda, the Diocesan Construction/Property Manager. Their initial focus has been on the assessment of damaged facilities, which is done by reviewing insurance claim reports and performing sight visits to determine the damages eligible for FEMA funding. The insurance claim is important because FEMA only funds the difference between the cost of repairs/replacement and what insurance proceeds are received. “We are waiting on damage reports and our final dispensations from Catholic Mutual. Whatever insurance doesn’t cover that’s when FEMA kicks in,” Deacon Arnold said. 

Deacon Arnold explains the process in four stages. “We are in the process of finishing up with STAGE 1, which involves providing temporary facility requests for six diocesan campuses.” Sacred Heart School had portable classrooms placed, but they don’t have raised walkways, an entry canopy or a security system; St. Joseph in Port Aransas needs parish hall offices; Ss. Cyril & Methodius needs temporary classrooms and offices built on the courtyard; St. Mary Star of the Sea Church needs a worship space and food pantry; and St. Peter in Fulton needs a rectory, parish hall, temporary worship space and offices. 

Gignac Architects have completed the design and layout of the temporary facilities for these parishes. “Those drawings and documents will go out for bid by general contractors this week. Once bids are received, we will submit that information to FEMA and start construction immediately after receiving their approval,” Vignes said. 

During STAGE 2, the project management team must gather essential elements of information for each property and submit it to FEMA. From this information, FEMA will create grant documents called Project Worksheets for each of the eligible facilities. “Once the diocese and FEMA agree upon the scope of work in the project worksheets, the grant funds are sent to the TDEM and the work can begin to repair or replace the facilities,” Vignes said.  “We’ve already conducted site visits with FEMA to evaluate the damages at several of the most significantly damaged parishes and we will continue these assessments until all parishes have been visited and all buildings have been assessed.” 

Upon completion and funding of the project worksheets, STAGE 3 begins, which entails design and construction. “There is a very tight procurement process you have to follow in order to gather bids and award contracts,” Deacon Arnold said. 

According to Vignes the “proper procurement process” requires strict adherence to the Code of Federal Regulations, specifically 2 CFR 200.  Deviations from these regulations could result in loss of funding or, even worse, repayment of funds reimbursed to the diocese. In either case, it’s a situation that can be avoided by following the correct process.  “You can’t just go out and hire someone you know and get them to fix or replace what you want. You have to advertise for it publicly, send out solicitation documents, provide adequate time to review the solicitation, accept proposals, evaluate the proposals, and award contracts that contain specific terms and conditions that meet the Code of Federal Regulations,” Vignes said. “It’s a pretty demanding process.”

During Stage 4, requests for reimbursement are made to the State of Texas for eligible costs incurred on the projects funded by the grants.  After all work is completed and costs have been reimbursed, a reconciliation is performed with FEMA and TDEM and the grant is closed.

 “We realize the level of devastation suffered by our parishes and understand their desire to perform the necessary repairs or replacements. Thus far, our efforts have been both methodical and strategic. We ask for everyone’s patience and persistence to allow us to navigate this process, the outcome of which can significantly benefit our diocese,” Deacon Arnold.  Our team hopes you will continue to pray for us to attain the results we are striving for.