Work on Joseph Floyd Manor proceeding

More than two years after a storm damaged the Joseph Floyd Manor public housing building in Charleston, repairs to the exterior are under way.

The budget is $250,000, and the effort should be completed this fall as workers replace the synthetic stucco covering two outside walls, among other fixes.

In February 2010, a strong wind peeled off a large section of exterior siding. No one was injured, but officials knew that repairing the building would take a while.

That’s because the process meant waiting for the state Insurance Reserve Fund to settle the claim.

Also, the improvements had to go through the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and an architect needed to be approved, said Walter Jenkins, director of facilities with the Charleston County Housing Authority.

The 12-story brick high-rise is an assisted-living facility on Mount Pleasant Street near Interstate 26. It is owned and managed by the county authority and has about 150 units.

Several severe thunderstorms pummeled the Lowcountry that week and one of them apparently had wind gusts strong enough to peel off part of the siding. The chunks fell to the ground outside the building.

Travelers on I-26 have had a view of the damage for the last two years.