OXFORD, Md. - Nestled along the mouth of the Tred Avon river in Talbot County sits the Town of Oxford.
And when we say nestled, we mean it.
Most of the town sits at less than seven feet above sea level, making it prone to flooding. And neighbors report that flooding has been an increasingly frequent problem in recent years.
"This year's been one of the worst years we've seen," said neighbor Jan Greenhawk. "More incidences, higher flooding, more people's homes being impacted, it's been pretty bad."
To help reduce costs to homeowners, for the first time ever, Oxford applied for and received a $2.6 million federal grant. The funds will help elevate fourteen homes in town.
"It's going to add to the resilience of this town," said Town Board of Commissioners President Tom Costigan. "It's going to take people off the list who actually have, when we have major flooding have water in their houses."
Participating homeowners will pay 10% of the costs to elevate their homes, with the remaining 90% paid by the grant.
With such funds coming into town, one neighbor hopes they're being distributed fairly.
"I hope that the fourteen homes are needed...that it's fourteen homes that were identified that are absolutely needed to be raised," said neighbor Steve Weissenberger, who was happy to see the money come to town. "I think it's great that we get the money," Weissenberger continued. "I just hope it's appropriately and that it's fairly used."
Another neighbor hopes the funding takes into account the added expenses of elevating the home of a disabled person.
"When you have a disabled person, you have to build the ramps to get them in, so that's expensive," Greenhawk said. "And the other issue is, once you get it raised, if your yard is flooded, a disabled person's not going to be able to get out."
Town Planner Marilyn Williams said that there are often state grants available to help with the costs of elevating a home, which is actually required if renovations that total more than 50% of the home's market value are done. She said you should check with your municipal or county office to learn what you could qualify for.
Oxford also received $1.06 million as part of partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's lab in Oxford, which will explore and test flood mitigation strategies. If those strategies are successful, they could be implemented in other flood prone communities along the Eastern Shore.
