Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Mobile cabinets bring high-ranking officials with various state agencies to towns to answer questions posed by residents.
Questions. Answers. Between the two is an ever-growing divide for residents looking to rebuild after being devastated by Hurricane Sandy. At a mobile cabinet meeting in Union Beach Tuesday, state officials with various agencies and departments attempted to bridge the gap by offering residents the opportunity to ask them questions, face-to-face, and hear answers that have so often eluded them since the late October storm. The idea, developed by Gov. Chris Christie’s administration and an extension of the governor’s early promise to cut through red tape, calls on high-ranking officials to serve the public at a local level. Held in Union Beach Fire Hose Company #1’s meeting room, residents were able to take their numerous questions directly …
Michele Pitzer has given up waiting for federal grant money and is moving forward to bring her family back home.
JERSEY SHORE -- Michele Pitzer realizes her family's newly elevated house looks awkward in the context of her Port Monmouth neighborhood. But being without a permanent home since Oct. 29 has taken too high a toll on her family. She is determined to bring her two young children back to the only home they have ever known -- back to a more stable environment -- and is not willing to wait months or even years to get a financial contribution from the government to do so. "Everybody has comments and opinions about what I'm doing," she said, referring to things she's heard about on Facebook. "Other survivors have asked me in the FEMA office, 'Why did you move forward on this?' My answer to them is, 'I'm just trying to do the right thing by my …
40.43454
-74.09475
651 Monmouth Ave, Port Monmouth, NJ
Pitzer home
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Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Plans are being formulated at the state level for how to spend Hurricane Sandy relief aid, but the money hasn't come in yet.
The state is developing plans for how and where to best allocate Hurricane Sandy relief aid, writing proposals for putting together lists for its various relevant agencies, from Housing and Urban Development to the Department of Transportation. The money will come, Gov. Chris Christie told a crowd in Union Beach Tuesday, and it will be used to rebuild New Jersey and get residents back into their hurricane-ravaged homes. Be patient, he said. The check hasn't been written yet. Christie joined other local legislators in celebration after a $50.7 billion hurricane relief bill passed in a contentious U.S. House of Representatives in January before heading off to the U.S. Senate for approval and finally to President Barack Obama’s desk for a …
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Representatives from several State departments will be on hand to answer questions and provide assistance to residents.
Editor's note: A previous version of this story reported that the event would be held Monday. The event is being held Tuesday. Representatives from several state departments are slated to spend the day in Monmouth County Tuesday, offering expert advice and assistance in a number of areas to victims of Hurricane Sandy, Gov. Chris Christie's office announced recently. Senior staff members from the Department of Banking and Insurance, Department of Community Affairs, Department of Environmental Protection, and the Business Action Center will be on hand at Union Beach Hose Co. #1 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. to do casework for residents who need assistance. The day of casework is part of Gov. Chris Christie's Mobile Cabinet effort, which seeks to …
Friday, February 1, 2013
The administration has made 16,800 loans since the hurricane hit New Jersey.
In just three months since Hurricane Sandy struck the East Coast, the U.S. Small Business Administration has approved more than $1.1 billion in disaster loans to residents and business owners affected by the storm. According to a release from the SBA, approximately 16,700 individuals have received loans, making Sandy the country's third largest disaster in terms of loaned dollars. Currently, Sandy sits behind 2005's Hurricane Katrina and its $10.8 billion in SBA loans, and 1994's Northridge, Calif., earthquake, which totaled $4 billion in loans. Sandy, however, could supplant those disaster totals in the long run. The SBA also announced recent emergency legislation in Congress that adds $799 million to the administration's disaster …
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Costs are primarily related to debris clean up following Hurricane Sandy.
Wednesday, three grants totalling more than $9.2 million were approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help cover the cost of public assistance and debris removal related to Hurricane Sandy. The funding will be used to reimburse a significant percentage of costs incurred by Belmar and Marlboro Township as well as the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management. According to a release from Sen. Frank Lautenberg's office Wednesday afternoon, Belmar will receive $4,062,468 for emergency debris removal to clear roadways for emergency vehicles in the aftermath of Sandy. The total cost of the shore town's public assistance project was $5.4 million. Marlboro is slated to receive $1,665,172 for its approximately $2.2 million …
A post-Sandy Q&A session helped answer some (but not all) questions about what will be required of shore property owners.
Recent public forums have helped answer questions about repairing and rebuilding after Superstorm Sandy. The question-and-answer sessions typically feature local residents, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) representatives and representatives of the local insurance and real estate industries. Even the panelists usually acknowledged a fair amount of uncertainty about the full ramifications of the unprecedented level of damage for the region and the process for rebuilding and recovering costs. Here's our best shot at summarizing the considerations for property owners as they rebuild after the Oct. 29 storm. But because of the considerable amount of confusion surrounding the whole process, feel free to share information, questions …
Friday, January 25, 2013
The State has appealed for more time, based on the need of its residents.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the US Small Business Association (SBA) have extended the deadline for victims of Hurricane Sandy to apply for aid. It is now March 1. The deadline was extended one month at the request of FEMA and the state of New Jersey, said spokesman Mark Jamison of the SBA's Office of Disaster Assistance. "We encourage people to apply," said Jamison, whose agency is offering signature-only loans under $14,000 to homeowners and renters. "SBA loans are not based on a person's current financial situation," he said. For amounts above that threshold, he said, "There are no costs associated with the loan, except for title insurance when that's required as a condition of collatoral." Interest rates are as …
Thursday, January 24, 2013
At a press conference in Seaside Heights, Gov. Chris Christie said the new flood maps will help the Jersey Shore rebuild better and stronger.
New Jersey will adopt the Federal Emergency Management's (FEMA) Advisory Base Flood Elevation maps, clearing the way for residents and business owners along the Jersey Shore to rebuild better and stronger, Gov. Chris Christie announced during a press conference in Seaside Heights Thursday afternoon. The move comes as residents along the shore wait to find out not if they'll have to raise their homes following Hurricane Sandy, but just how high. "If we wait, all we're doing is delaying New Jersey's recovery," Christie said, adding: "I think this is what we need to do to build a 21st century Jersey Shore." The advisory maps, or ABFE's, were released in December and recommend that residents in flood zones in 10 counties and 194 communities …
Governor will hold press conference in Seaside Heights Thursday to address concerns
Gov. Chris Christie will make what some believe is a "major announcement" on hurricane flood map regulations Thursday. Christie will appear at 3 p.m. at the Seaside Heights Fire Department at the Main Fire Bay at 116 Sherman Avenue in Seaside Heights. Christie chose a town that has seen the worst of the wind and flooding damage as a result of the October superstorm. But the new flooding map designs have become the biggest source of contention for long-term homeowners who are fearing that they'll either have to put their houses on stilts, or move out entirely. For instance, the Point Pleasant Boro mayor, council and Sandy-flooded residents are objecting to sections of a FEMA advisory map that puts them in a "V Zone" that calls for more …
39.94374
-74.07333
901 Boulevard, Seaside Heights, NJ
Seaside Heights Borough Hall
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Sal
8:02 am on Monday, February 25, 2013
The first thing everyone in this situation has to do is notify the township and the County that their home was damaged/destroyed and not livable___so they are not paying the dwelling portions of their real estate tax bills until thier property is repaired and again livable.. The only way the townships officials to wake up and move is when you hit them in the pockets. more ›