Coast elderly face task of rebuilding paid-for homes - The Clarion-Ledger

Coast elderly face task of rebuilding paid-for homes - The Clarion-Ledger: "Pete Smith, spokesman for Gov. Haley Barbour, said anyone who lost a home should apply for the $4 billion federal loan program that will pay some property owners up to $150,000 to help rebuild homes flooded in the storm. He said some applicants might not be immediately approved for the program. But they might later qualify for other housing programs.

'This is the first phase,' he said. 'Other programs are in the process of being developed. We're not discouraging anyone from applying.'

Biloxi City Councilman George Lawrence said $150,000 wouldn't go far if other money, including loans from the Small Business Administration and payments from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, first are subtracted from a grant award. Contractors are charging an average of $100 per square foot to rebuild, he said.

'Where are they actually getting help from?' asked Lawrence, whose constituency includes residents in Biloxi's modest Point Cadet neighborhood. He said the area is filled with elderly residents who spent their lives working in the city's seafood industry. 'What line am I supposed to tell them to get in?'"