Residents voice frustration at special Leland storm recovery meeting
LELAND, NC (WWAY) — The town of Leland held a special recovery information meeting Wednesday night.
Residents who suffered property damage could meet with staff from the town’s Emergency Management and Planning and Inspections departments about recovery resources available to them.
There was also information about potential financial assistance, emergency permits, and inspections.
However, some residents also used the meeting to voice their frustration about what had happened to them.
“No one should live in these homes, we need help and no one should live here,” Hunter Gadwill said.
The Stoney Creek community was one of the hardest hit areas in Leland where many residents, like Kirsten Kringle-Baer, are still cleaning up.
She doesn’t think many of her neighbors or those who attended the meeting will want to rebuild their flooded homes.
“Most of the talk was about, you know, what do you do when its time to turn back on your electricity so you can rebuild your home,” Kringle-Baer said. “And I’m kind of looking around like is anyone in here actually gonna rebuild their home because like I, I didn’t get the impression that anyone wanted to stay.”
John Grimes is the town of Leland’s emergency management chief.
He said he expected the frustration residents gave during the meeting and hoped those who went to the meeting understood the town is there for them.
“Our hope is that they understand that we are fighting for them,” Grimes said. “We’re out making phone calls, we’re in the community, we’re doing the things that we need to do to get them what we can get them, the services that we can get them. So we hope that they took away that their town government is proactive in helping them.”
A disaster declaration, whether at the state or federal level has not yet been made, which Grimes said would change what programs and resources would be made available.
He added that 19 homes within Leland were damaged due to the storm.
A resolution will be looked at during Thursday night’s regular Leland Town Council meeting, which would waive both zoning and building permitting fees for residents.
