Rock Rapids, Iowa — In the aftermath of the flood of 2014 in Rock Rapids, several people who live near the Rock River and Moon Creek found their homes destroyed, unlivable, or unsafe.
The City of Rock Rapids has been partnering with the federal government for a buyout program in which the city uses federal funds to help buy the property, demolishes the structures, and then turns the property into permanent green space. Not all of the properties were purchased at the same time, and that process continues, according to city officials.
Rock Rapids Mayor Jason Chase gives us an update on the program.
Chase says the $6 million project will turn around 50 lots in the town into green space. He says that’s roughly five percent of the total occupied residential lots in Rock Rapids.
