Use of flood consultant raises serious concerns

Hiring an outside consultant to get an accurate account of the flood damage to the public library brings concerns. Two inspections by Federal Emergency Management Agency of a multimillion-

dollar building found only 16 percent damage the first time but more than 50 percent the second inspection - a huge disparity. Just how well are FEMA inspectors trained?

Think of the thousands of other homes and businesses FEMA inspected after the flood and we have a major problem if they were that far off the mark on those inspections.

I also find it hard to believe that we couldn't find anyone locally who could have pointed out the same discrepancies or more than the consultants found, and saved the city even more money. Some local experts may have even volunteered their services for free to help the library. Then again, maybe how much actual flood damage the library suffered is not important. How many federal tax dollars go to the city may only depend on how the paperwork (red tape) is done. I imagine a consultant at a few hundred dollars an hour can shuffle the papers very well.

Phil Price

Cedar Rapids