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Flood waters destroy a small shed in Alexandria, Missouri. paperwork. Others had heard rumors that Alexandria could not participaIe in the program because their Mayor, Robert Davis. was against Ihe program and would noI sign the papers to begin the application process. Mayor Davis assured the people thaI. alIhough he was not in favor of the buyout. he would nevertheless sign Ihe necessary papers. Immediately after the meet- ing. Alexandria. s ciIy council meI and voIed unanimously to begin the process of applying 10 Ihe Missouri DepartmenI of Economic Develop- ment for a CommuniIy Development Block Grant (CDBG) 10 get the money for the matching funds to qualify for the federal buyout money. At Ihe same time, David Shoush. representing Clark County as the director of the Northeast Missouri Regional Develop- ment Commission----of which Alexan- dria is a part-informed the city council that he would begin the process of applying for buyout funds to buy !lood damaged property in Clark County which had also been hit hard by the !lood waters. Acres of farmland that Iotaled 32.000 were covered with water. and 50 residences had been damaged. ]0 Page 14 Under Ihe direcIion of David Davison and David Shoush. the NortheasI Missouri Regional Planning Commission began the process of applying for buyout money. Initially. 110 of the 114 property owners in Alexandria. and twel1ly-five of fifty Clark County residel1ls whose homes had susIained damage, ex pressed inIeresI in Ihe buyOUI program. On January 26. 1994, Davison and Shoush. members of the Alexandria city gov- ernment, and the Ihree coul1lY commis- sioners for Clark County appeared before Governor Carnahan. s Review and Hazard MitigaIion Commiuee to consider claims forbuyouI money. The commiuee heard requests and passed on those they considered worthy to the Governor. who in turn passed Ihe requesIs on 10 the Federal Emergency Management Agency-thaI ultimaIely supplied Ihe buyOUI funds. Davison submitted a request for $4,767.200, while Shoush's appli- caIion asked for $1.000.000. Davison, acting on behalf of La Grange. Missouri. a Mississippi River town in Lewis County. about forty miles south of Alexandria, also requested S 1.649,800 to buyout homes in that town.]] Support for the buyout pro- gram was not unanimous at this meeIing. Alexandria's Mayor. Robert Davis, told the committee thaI he opposed the buyout, and that he based his opposition on the facI that many Alexandria residents had already purchased building permits to rebuild wiIhin the town. an action, he felt, indicated their desire to return.]2 However. Alexandria aldennan Tom Alberts and the town.s city clerk Julie Wilson, countered the mayor.s remarks by Slating Ihat most town residents had applied for building permiIs in order to qualify for free building supplies to make temporary repairs to Iheir flood damaged homes. Both felt Ihere was genuine interest in Ihe buyout pro- gram. 13 The Governor. s committee did not require a community's unanimous support for the buyout program and felt that Alexandria's request deserved the Governor.s consideration. As the Governor considered Alexandria.s request for funding. Alexandria.s CiIy Council continued to work on other requirements of Ihe buyouI program. Even if FEMA approved the town's applicaIion. Alexandria would sIill have to maIch one quarter of the amount the federal government supplied. The City Coun- cil invited the Missouri Department of Economic Development's Sally He- menway to tour Alexandria to esIimate the extenI of damage to Alexandria and determine wheIher the town was eligible for a CDBG grant. During her visit. Hemenway made it a point to stress Ihe voluntary nature of the buyOUI program, pointing out in a discussion with Iown residents thaI any applicant was free 10 back out of the program up 10 Ihe final moment when Ihey signed their land over to the city. She also assured the townspeople that each homeowner would be contacIed individually to discuss the