Panama City buys flooded home to prevent future damage
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Kelli Fuqua of Panama City, Florida, no longer owns a house that repeatedly flooded, as the city purchased it through a voluntary buyout program.
Fuqua and her two daughters lived in the home from 2018 to 2024, experiencing flood damage from Hurricanes Michael and Sally, as well as separate flash floods. Each flood required her to coordinate repairs and temporarily relocate her family.
The city’s Hurricane Sally Voluntary Home Buyout Program used federal grant funding to purchase homes in special flood hazard areas damaged by Hurricane Sally. Fuqua said she felt trapped because she could not sell the repeatedly flooded property, fearing the impact on her credit and future. After the demolition of her house on Stephen Drive, the land will remain undeveloped and function as a catch basin to help manage future flooding.
City Commissioner Brian Grainger explained the program allows the city to acquire properties the private market avoids and put the land to beneficial use.
