Thursday, October 19, 2006
"Blanco Road Home" for 13 of 123,000
CITY BUSINESS
(excerpt)
FAIRFAX, Va. — ICF International, the firm administering The Road Home program to aid Louisiana hurricane victims, has been awarded the second and third phases of its Housing Program Management Services contract.
Under these next two phases, ICF will continue to process applications and provide housing counseling and assistance to homeowners affected by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. ICF expects to double hiring and team with more local businesses, said Michael Byrne, an ICF senior vice president and chief program executive.
To date, ICF has been allocated $756 million to implement The Road Home, which is expected to last three years. As of this week, the program has approved $18.7 million of the $7.4 billion the federal government has dedicated to homeowner recovery.
Byrne said the State estimates nearly 123,000 residents are eligible for the rebuilding grant monies. As of this week, 13 had closed on deals offered through The Road Home.
ICF has hired 400 employees for The Road Home...
The contract funding is expected to support some 800 staff at the program's peak, including costs to train employees. The money will also be spent on leasing, establishing, and maintaining housing assistance centers; building information technology infrastructure for processing the applications; and funding outreach for The Road Home.
LPNS COMMENTARY: "FUNDING OUTREACH" IS ALL THOSE BLANCO CAMPAIGN COMMERCIALS DISGUISED AS "PUBLIC SERVICE" ANNOUNCEMENTS.
