Thursday, May 23, 2013
The party will be courtesy of the TV Network Destination American and USA WEEKEND.
Union Beach has won an "over-the-top" Fourth of July celebration on the beachfront, thanks to its ex-Fire Dept. Chief who nominated the Hurricane Sandy-devastated Bayshore town in a national contest sponsored by the TV network Destination America and USA WEEKEND. The 2 mile-square town was selected with Fayetteville, NC as being "most deserving" among 3,500 entries submitted in March. The judges were persuaded by Union Beach resident Robert LaBerta's 500-word essay. In it, LaBerta wrote, "I'm a humble 37-year resident of a small NJ town. During Superstorm Sandy, 90% of our town was flooded and many homes destroyed. The residents of my small town came together to not only rebuild but save each other emotionally. I had the honor of being …
Monday, May 20, 2013
Home buyouts in areas prone to flooding expected to start soon, though participation remains voluntary.
Buyouts of properties in flood prone areas are expected to begin within a matter of weeks, beginning in Middlesex County and working south into the summer months as residents and their respective town officials make the difficult decision to abandon entire neighborhoods for good. Though buyout specifics have been limited, Bob Martin, commissioner of New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection, said between eight and 10 towns along the coast have inquired about participating in the State’s Blue Acres program, which purchases severe repetitive-loss homes in flood areas and converts the land into open space. Martin said he wanted to be cautious about naming the municipalities that have inquired about the property buyouts as many have …
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
A Matawan man with close ties to Union Beach was one of several Sandy survivors to be published in the collection titled "Oh Sandy: An Anthology of Humorous Stories for a Serious Cause."
Hurricane Sandy was no laughing matter for those people displaced from their flooded homes, for those throwing out hundreds of dollars worth of food after losing power or for those who lost their homes entirely. However, they say laughter is the best medicine. "When you are gutting people's houses, you either start laughing or start crying and don't stop," said James Butler, a former Union Beach resident who continues to coach youth soccer there. "When you are dealing with tragedy there is at first shock and then you kind of move on to the gallows of humor." Each day after the storm, Butler, now a Matawan resident, visited Union Beach to help his parents, his childhood friends and his soccer players' families clean up and rebuild. He …
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Join sponsors May 4, 1:00 p.m. at Firemen’s Park on Front Street in Union Beach, New Jersey.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
An estimated crowd of about 1,000 walked in support of recovery in Union Beach Saturday.
Towns all along New Jersey's coast were devastated by Hurricane Sandy. Boardwalks were pulled back into the sea by surging waves, homes were knocked off of their foundations and residents left homeless. Despite the disaster, there's still hope. In Union Beach Saturday, and estimated crowd of about 1,000 people walked through the Sandy-ravaged town to show their support for recovery and each other. With little notice about the event other than a posting online, word of mouth spread throughout the week, resulting in a large and somewhat unexpected turnout. Many of those walking count themselves among those left homeless or living in significantly damaged structures. As long as there's hope, they said, they'll survive.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Proceeds go to two schools and Shore 2 Recover
A fundraiser for two schools and Shore 2 Recover will be held from 5 p.m. to midnight March 2 at Martell's on the Point Pleasant Beach boardwalk. The admission fee of $25, for non-stop live music and complimentary dinner buffet, will be donated as follows: $20 to Hugh J. Boyd Elementary School in Seaside Heights and Memorial School in Union Beach and $5 to Shore2Recover’s rebuild program. Shore 2 Recover was founded by Toni Pecunia, a resident of Point Pleasant whose home was partially-flooded by the storm, according to the organization's website. The organization has donated funds to various needs, including helping Sandy-impacted families and to St. Paul's kitchen in Bay Head that has been feeding free, hot meals to affected families …
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, January 12, 2013
Police say the man was wielding a firearm with a handmade bayonet.
A New Jersey grand jury voted this week to indict a Union Beach man on assault and resisting arrest charges. According to court documents, investigators allege that Joseph Infantolino, 45, assaulted or attempted to assault a victim with a firearm that had a handmade bayonet attached to it on Sept. 22 in Union Beach. Infantolino allegedly resisted arrest that same day by using or threatening to use physical force, the court documents state. Infantolino was indicted on a total of five charges, including third degree aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, third degree resisting arrest, second degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, third degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and fourth degree unlawful …
Friday, December 21, 2012
The yellow brick home along the Raritan Bay, known as the Princess Cottage, was torn down Friday morning.
The photo of the Princess Cottage carved nearly in half by surging flood waters has become one of the most enduring images from Hurricane Sandy. Located along the Raritan Bay in Union Beach, the yellow brick home stood for 150 years before Sandy caused damage beyond repair. On Friday, Jon Zois and his family watched as the historic building was demolished, finishing the job the storm started. It's not the way he wanted to make history, Zois said, but he believes that the image of the building, still standing even after being cut in half, stands as a symbol of New Jersey's resiliency in the face of disaster. Though the home is gone and along with it the associated history, Zois said his father, the owner of the property, plans on …
Friday, December 14, 2012
On the corner of Jersey Avenue and Shore Drive sits a Christmas Tree with a simple message: With hope, Union Beach will rebuild.
James Butler drove through Union Beach in shock the day after Sandy left the Bayshore community in shambles. As he took in the damage, he saw what he thought might be an artificial Christmas Tree jutting out of the mounds of debris and muck near the intersection of Jersey Avenue and Shore Drive. A few days passed before he mentioned on his private Facebook account that he was thinking about setting it up the next time he drove by. His friends encouraged him to do so, but it wasn't until he experienced the power of hope that he set up the tree. "I was gutting a widow's house that I know. She had lived there for thirty or forty years and she was going through belongings of her husband who passed away many years ago. It was just tough," he …
mimi nelson
10:54 pm on Thursday, May 23, 2013
Congrats and a special thanks to Roberta LaBerta for taking time to pen UB's journey since hurricane Sandy. more ›