By Ashley Sanders

The News staff writer

NEDERLAND — Nearly one full year after Hurricane Rita ripped through Southeast Texas, many Nederland business owners are still struggling to make themselves whole again.

To find out just how much damage the category 3 storm inflicted on the city, the Nederland Chamber of Commerce conducted a survey in December 2005 of all of their members. What the chamber found was “surprising.”

“We were surprised at the amount of damages that businesses sustained and the number that don’t have access to adequate funding,” an Aug. 10 letter sent out to chamber members reads.

The survey, sent to 500 chamber members, returned 153 responses.

“That response rate gives us a very high confidence level for the accuracy of the data,” the letter continues. “The projected damages to businesses is over $11 million and nearly one-third of the businesses don’t have funding to make necessary repairs.”

According to the survey, 88 members who returned the survey said they experienced substantial damage during the storm. And while 18 members said they had minimum damage, 20 chamber participants said their business suffered major losses.

Only 26 business owners reported no damage at all.

Of the respondents, 40 percent said their damages cost $30,000 or more to repair. Another 18 percent said their hurricane repairs ran between $10,000-$37,000 and 37 percent of the survey participants said their costs were under $10,000.

While more than half of those who had damage to their business could meet the financial requirements to repair their business, 30 percent said they did not have enough money to cover the cost of their repairs.

“The Nederland Chamber is working with local, state and federal agencies to make sure area businesses have adequate information on available loan programs,” the chamber said in their letter to members. “Unfortunately, there are no grants available. When we have all of the potential funding sources identified we will schedule a meeting.”

For more information on the Nederland Chamber of Commerce storm damage survey, call 722-0279.