Kevin Robinson believes people don’t completely recover from flooding — they forge ahead.
"There's the time before the event that occurred in June of 2024, and there's the event itself, and then there's all of the efforts to live life as normally as possible for everybody that was impacted," Robinson said.
Robinson currently serves as the city manager of Spencer, a community of more than 11,000 people, sidelined by historic flooding from the Little Sioux and Ocheyedan rivers.
A Presidential Disaster Declaration covered more than a dozen Iowa counties after relentless rains sent rivers surging over their banks 19 months ago. Floodwaters inundated homes and businesses from above and below ground — leaving behind a mess and uncertainty.
“About 85% to 90% of the commercial properties that were impacted are back open and remodeled,” Robinson said. “There are still ongoing efforts in the long-term recovery aspect of things to continue to put people's lives and homes back together.
Spencer is one of eight Iowa cities and towns, plus Sioux County, requesting $53.4 million in federal buyout funds for 267 properties, according to Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
While many businesses bounced back, Spencer sought money at the end of 2024 to remove 41 homes from flood-prone neighborhoods in the town’s southwest and southeast areas.
“We've come to appreciate the FEMA process and the federal government. ‘Quickly’ is not a term that is rapidly deployed in this process,” Robinson said. “Every deadline that we've thrown out there when we think things would be accomplished seems to get moved farther out.”
Although Robinson approves of the Federal Emergency Management Administration's (FEMA) efforts, he remains frustrated by the slow pace. More than $7 million in buyout funds still haven’t reached property owners eager to rebuild their lives.
“People continue to pay mortgages and property insurance on these properties, and so we've been fighting and advocating for them with the federal government and FEMA to get this done as fast as possible,” he added.
Michael Cappannari, director of external affairs with FEMA Region 7, said the cost analysis for northwest Iowa buyouts continues, but the process is lengthy and unaffected by recent federal cuts.
“It never comes fast enough. But just know that we are doing everything we can to get these projects reviewed and approved as quickly as we can,” Cappannari said.
Just days after the flood, Cappannari saw the destruction in northwest Iowa firsthand. He was in Rock Valley, helping to register homeowners for aid. The town suffered the region’s worst damage, with leaders seeking $31.4 million to buy out 131 properties.
So far, in northwest Iowa, Cappannari noted that FEMA delivered $37 million for debris removal, infrastructure repair and household aid.
“We expect that to grow significantly as we go through the details of the projects and look at invoices, etc. But that's how much has been provided to the cities," Cappannari said. "Then we provided funds directly to individuals as well, households that were affected, money for basic repairs."
Once approved, buyout homes will be demolished and replaced with green spaces, such as parks or ballfields, helping communities heal and prepare for future floods.
“We're doing everything we can to turn around these projects,” Cappannari said.
In Spencer, Robinson hopes to transform destroyed and damaged homes into new amenities — pocket parks, shelters, even flower beds — as the community continues to rebuild physically and mentally.
“We don't have any definitive plans yet, other than the concept of trying to take those properties and add value back into the neighborhood,” Robinson said. “It's the emotional recovery and the trauma offload, if you will, of the event, that takes longer for a community to recover.”
