Moretown, Vermont - September 21, 2011
Late last month Irene struck, raining down millions in damage to city- and town-owned property in Vermont. Federal assistance is certain, but it's still unclear just how much will arrive.
"We can't get the answers on that until we find out how much damage there is. We're still counting those beans," said Gov. Peter Shumlin, D-Vermont.
Moretown select board chairman John Hoogenboom says they've received a line of credit for $250,000. He says they'll be seeking another half a million soon.
"But probably it will take more because we've already put five roads out to bid at a cost of $300,000," Hoogenboom said.
With 11 smaller projects still to come, he expects the final tab to exceed $1 million before repairs are done in his small town.
"Anything in surplus we've been using basically to pay our bills," he said.
"For the most part we're just coming up on the tax due dates for a lot of towns, so they're probably not in cash rich situations at this point," said Steve Jeffrey, the executive director of the Vermont League of Cities and Towns.
Jeffrey says the challenge isn't limited to Moretown.
"The first priority is obviously to fix what's broken and the towns are really paying attention to that and doing the work that needs to be done to get our economy back and running, schools open," he said.
But Vermont's construction season is drawing to a close, and some federal dollars will require work to be done in less than six months. Public assistance that is covered by the federal and state government could take more than a year to arrive.
In Waterbury, officials tell WCAX News that despite a $250,000 advance, they'll quickly go through the cash in the bank and will have to borrow soon.
Moretown officials say they'll likely have to ask voters to tap funds set aside for future projects.
Kyle Midura - WCAX News
