ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Janét Buford-Johnson says her home is still suffering from the effects of Hurricane Ian, nearly three years after the storm devastated her Orlo Vista neighborhood.

“I have foundational cracks in my home,” Buford-Johnson said. “If I go in my utility room, I can actually see through the cinder blocks to the outside.”

That’s just some of the damage left behind after floodwaters swamped streets and homes across the area back in 2022.

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“We lost everything,” she recalled. “I lost both my cars. I lost everything — everything of my son’s and my daughter’s stuff. Everything’s gone.”

Now, three years and $23 million in taxpayer dollars later, Orange County says it’s 99.9% finished with a major flood mitigation project located behind Buford-Johnson’s home. All three retention ponds in the area have been dug 12 feet deeper and are now connected by pumps, pipes, and inlets. The upgrades are all designed to ease future flooding and protect the community during major storms and hurricanes.

“It’s been battle-tested,” said Orange County Commissioner Mike Scott. “We’ve had quite a few significant heavy rain events, and this has stood the test of time so far.”

Commissioner Scott also highlighted a second project, the Orlo Vista Integrated Water Resources Project. It’s focused on capturing stormwater and reusing it for irrigation and aquifer recharge — where much of Florida’s drinking water comes from.

“However we use it, it draws down more water, so the likelihood of flooding during a bad storm is more reduced,” Scott explained.

While some flood-weary families in Orlo Vista believe the projects will help, Buford-Johnson says more still needs to be done — especially when it comes to clearing the neighborhood’s drainage system.

“Even a couple weeks ago when it rained — we had that serious rain — it flooded out here,” she said. “It was in the street. It was up to the mailbox. Right there in the street.”

Orange County officials say storm drains in Orlo Vista were recently inspected and are functioning properly. However, they added that there’s no immediate solution when intense summer storms bring heavy rains.

Construction teams expect to finish the flood mitigation project later this month. The Water Resources Project is expected to be completed by 2029.