New York City To Receive State And Federal Funding For Coastal Storm Resiliency Projects

New York City has received the first phase of federal approval for a coastal flood protection infrastructure plan for the community of Breezy Point, Queens.

An aerial photo taken April 26, 2013, showed how Breezy Point, Queens, looked six months after Superstorm Sandy devastated the area. Photo courtesy of DailyNews.com.

The plan will include building a double dune barrier system, along with other bayside flood and erosion protection measures to protect the community from future damage from extreme weather.

Breezy Point is located on the westernmost end of the Rockaway Peninsula of Queens and suffered some of the city’s worst damage from Hurricane Sandy. Waves struck from the Atlantic and rising waters poured into the community from Jamaica Bay.

The mayor’s office reported that storm damage in the area included electrical power systems and sparked “fires that ultimately consumed135 homes.” Overall, about 350 homes in the area were lost as a result of Sandy.

The newly proposed dune system would continue the existing dune line on the Atlantic side of Breezy Point. This would provide natural flood and erosion protection using the area’s natural features.

The city says that the dunes will be designed to withstand a sea level rise of about 2.5 feet in the area over the life of the project.

In addition, it’s planned that these measures will be complemented on the bayside of Breezy Point and Roxbury by constructing bay walls and groins to combat flood and erosion.

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New FEMA Aid For Residents and Businesses In New Jersey and Connecticut, Say Governors

New Jersey home destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. Photo courtesy of mymodernmet.com.

Nearly three months after one of the worst hurricanes in U.S. history, with people still displaced from their homes and businesses – if they still have any to go back to – help has been slow in coming, but at least it’s still coming.

New Jersey, one of the hardest hit states, is still working on getting displaced people back into permanent housing.

In New Jersey’s latest housing relief effort, the Christie Administration said that displaced households receiving FEMA rental assistance – currently living in hotels or motels – will now be allowed to use these funds to pay for security deposits so they can move into more permanent apartments.

The Christie Administration says that:

Households receiving FEMA rental assistance can utilize up to one month of their rental allotment for a security deposit and not have to give it back to FEMA at the end of the lease.

In general, FEMA provides an initial grant of two months of rent money to households that have been displaced due to Hurricane Sandy, but all households that receive FEMA rental assistance may ask for additional funding if they need it. They will need to show their lease and all receipts for rent and security deposits. FEMA rent money cannot be used to pay for telephone or television service or utilities.

If households have already paid a security deposit with their own money, FEMA is unable to provide reimbursement. However, if further rental assistance is needed, people can show the security deposit receipt to FEMA to support their request for additional rent money. Security deposits paid with FEMA money can cover damage by people or pets, provided they are clearly identified on the lease.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, in his State of the State address earlier this month, assessed the damages to his state saying that, “Sandy was the worst storm to strike New Jersey in 100 years. 346,000 homes were damaged or destroyed. Nearly 7 million people and 1,000 schools had their power knocked out. 116,000 New Jerseyans were evacuated or displaced from their homes. 41,000 families are still displaced from their homes.”

In a support effort, Christie’s office adds that the state and FEMA have resources that can help people find available local and regional housing.

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New York City Mayor Bloomberg Gives Overview of Progress on Hurricane Sandy Recovery Efforts

A couple empty gas from a damaged car for their generator in the Rockaways neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York November 5, 2012. Photo and caption courtesy of Yahoo! News.

Touring of some of the hardest hit areas of the storm – including South Brooklyn neighborhood like Coney Island, Seagate, and Gerritsen Beach, as well as places in Queens like the Rockaways, and much of Staten Island – as expected, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said this weekend that there are still hundreds of thousands of New York City residents without power and “some of them are still pumping water out of their basements, and they’re confronting what they’ve lost and what they do next.”

Yesterday, the mayor said, “One of the greatest fears we have is with the cold weather coming, we have to make sure that people can stay warm. Among hardest hit are the Rockaways and Staten Island, where a lot of places still don’t have electricity, but are still going to experience cold.

“In the Rockaways, I talked with many concerned residents. I assured them that we’ll do everything possible to get power back on. Our team has been working with the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA), which provides electrical service on the Rockaways.”

As of yesterday, there were still about 19,000 homes in the Rockaways without power. The mayor said that LIPA agreed to add more crews to the job in the Rockaways, adding that they have already also delivered 10 generators to Hammel Houses, a local housing development.

Residents living in public housing have been among the most effect by the storm. The mayor explained that, “Some 45,000 public housing residents live in the coastal areas designated as ‘Zone A,’ and many of them live in the Rockaways,” further saying that over the weekend, the city has “been going block-by-block to identify the issues that are blocking power from being turned back on.”

The mayor also cautioned though that, “Even when power can be turned back on, some of the buildings are going to be out of commission for a long time because of damage to boilers and electrical systems,” adding that, “It’s not just public housing; it’s private apartments and individual houses that have been impacted as well.”

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FEMA Offers States Extension Option for Katrina/Rita Direct Housing Assistance Program

FEMA temporary housing trailer community. Photo courtesy of OhMyGov.com.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s temporary housing program for families and individuals affected by the Katrina and Rita disasters may be extended until May 1, 2009 at the request of affected individual states to the agency. Otherwise, the program is scheduled to end on March 1, 2009.

At the time of this posting, only Louisiana and Mississippi have requested the extensions. Each state has until the March 1, 2009 deadline to request an extension, otherwise that will be the date on which the program is terminated for that state, according to Ashley Small, public affairs specialist for FEMA.

Families and individuals that are still residing in the temporary housing “will be receiving letters, if they have not already received them, notifying them of the extension,” said Ms. Small.

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