Fresh flowers sit on top of a burned car in Gates on Sunday, September 20, 2020. (Amanda Loman/Salem Reporter)
State officials are asking Oregonians to weigh in on how the state should spend millions in federal wildfire recovery money.
More than 4,000 Oregon homes were destroyed by severe wildfires in 2020, according to the state Office of Emergency Management. Much of the $422 million federal grant from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development department will be used to replace lost homes, but the state can also use some of the money to repair or rebuild public infrastructure or to rebuild the local economy.
The Oregon Housing and Community Services Department is running an online survey seeking input on how to spend the money. Oregonians will also be able to share feedback on the eventual plan in May.
Alex Campbell, chief external affairs officer for Recovery and Resiliency at the department, said in a statement that state employees are especially interested in hearing from older Oregonians, Latinos and people with disabilities who have specific housing needs.
“We are looking for public input, because it’s the right thing to do,” he said. “It’s the ‘Oregon Way,’ and we know it will make the plan better.”
The federal funding follows $150 million that the state Legislature allocated in 2021 for housing in the counties most affected by the 2020 fires. Jackson County, in particular, lost more than 2,300 homes, most of which were manufactured homes in 18 mobile home parks destroyed by the Almeda fire.
About 280 studio apartments are set to open in Jackson County by June, according to the Housing and Community Services Department. Another 687 affordable homes in Douglas, Jackson, Klamath and Lane counties will begin housing people by the end of the year.
-Julia Shumway, Oregon Capital Chronicle
