ATLANTIC, IA — Iowa 3rd District Democrat Representative Cindy Axne, today (Friday), announced a new grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) to facilitate the hiring of a disaster recovery coordinator for flood-affected counties in Southwest Iowa. The $180,000 award goes to help the Southwest Iowa Planning Council (SWIPCO) to establish a coordinator who will implement long-term strategic plans that will assist recovery efforts in counties in southwest Iowa including Fremont, Harrison, and Shelby. According to the EDA, the grant will cover 80% of the costs of establishing and filling the coordinator position.

Rep. Axne says “Securing the funds we need to help with flooding recovery is only one step on the pathway to rebuilding our communities. We need to have professionals in place to make sure our communities are working efficiently and effectively to not just get back to where we were before the floods, but to help us grow beyond them. This new position, part of Department of Commerce’s multi-million dollar investment in Iowa in the aftermath of last spring’s floods, will help us revitalize communities and attract new opportunities.”

The new recovery coordinator will help to create a stable economic climate for business attraction and retention, as well as improving the well-being of the region’s citizens when faced with potential devastating disasters, which will help spur business and social redevelopment in the region. Her office says after securing $3 billion for Midwest flood recovery in last year’s federal disaster bill, Rep. Axne has been tracking these and other grants that are helping Iowa rebuild with her Iowa Flood Funding Tracker.

As of December, the U.S. Department of Commerce reported to Rep. Axne that it has spent $6.6 million on flood recovery efforts in Iowa.