Beshear shares rainbow photo over Skyview Estates, a sign of hope

A rainbow stretched over Skyview Estates in Perry County, and Gov. Andy Beshear shared the image as a symbol of hope for Eastern Kentucky families still rebuilding after the floods. The photo, taken by new homeowner April Spears, landed because Skyview is no abstract recovery project. It is a real neighborhood in Hazard where families who lost everything in 2022 are now watching walls go up and roads improve.

The 2022 Eastern Kentucky floods, which hit from July 25 to July 29, were described by the National Weather Service as deadly flash flooding and devastating river flooding. The storm system killed 43 people, and Perry County was among the counties where homes, roads and lives were upended. For many residents, the recovery has been measured not in speeches but in whether a lot can be built on, whether a contractor can reach it and whether a family can finally move in.

Skyview Estates sits on roughly 49.2 to 50 acres planned as a high-ground subdivision for flood survivors. State recovery materials say it is one of seven high-ground sites under development or completed across Kentucky, and one 2025 account said the project could eventually include more than 100 buildable lots for affordable single-family homes. The Housing Development Alliance has led construction there, turning the site into one of the most visible pieces of the state’s housing response.

The work has moved in stages. In July 2024, Beshear said a half-mile portion of Skyview Lane was being widened and improved so contractors could safely access the community. By April 25, 2025, he was back in Hazard with local leaders helping raise the walls on one of five new homes and announcing more than $8 million in funding for Perry County. In December 2025, the county also received $76,564 in SAFE awards to support electric and communications connections at Skyview Estates.

That is why the rainbow photo resonated so strongly. For flood survivors in Perry County, it showed more than weather over a hillside subdivision. It showed progress they can point to by name, at a place built to keep families on higher ground after the worst flood in modern memory. Kentucky officials have said the state’s flood response, including work by the Kentucky National Guard and partner agencies, saved 1,400 lives. Skyview now stands as part of the harder task that followed: giving those survivors a permanent place to return to.