Posted: Thursday, September 18, 2014 10:30 am
Build it Back has been circulating some updated numbers on its progress in South Queens, and although it has been slow, the program seems to actually be moving forward with the reconstruction of hundreds of homes damaged in Hurricane Sandy.
According to statistics from the program, 22 homes in South Queens neighborhoods hit hard by the storm nearly two years ago have already had construction completed through the program, though that’s of more than 8,500 that have signed up. Though the number of homes that have been completed is small, until last March, not a single Sandy-damaged home in the city had work finished through the program.
In the 32nd Council District, which includes all of Howard Beach, Broad Channel and the Rockaway Peninsula west of Arverne, Build it Back has recorded 6,426 active applications into the program. Of those, 5,594 have had their initial intake meeting and 3,027 have been through the damage inspection process. The city says 1,836 option review meetings have been held and 969 homeowners have selected options. There have been 380 design consultations for homes in the district.
A total of 1,904 homeowners in the district who have applied to Build it Back have withdrawn their applications or have not responded to callbacks.
Build it Back has handed out 187 reimbursement checks to single-family and multi-family homeowners — 184 of which are for single-family homes for a combined total of $4.1 million. Construction has commenced on 113 homes and finished on 19.
In the 31st Council District, which includes Far Rockaway, the eastern portion of the Rockaway Peninsula and Rosedale, 2,154 homeowners have registered for the program, 1,733 have had their intake meetings and 1,037 have had damage inspection done. A total of 509 homeowners have had option review meetings and 273 have selected options. Sixty-one homeowners have had design consultations.
Thirty reimbursement checks have been sent out, 29 of which are for single-family homes, worth a total of $436,000. Construction has started on 36 homes in the district and three have been completed.
A total of 714 homeowners in the 31st District have withdrawn their applications.
“Build it Back is finally starting to produce results for homeowners,” Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park), who represents the 32nd Council District, said in a statement. “This progress is long-overdue but good news nonetheless. As I’ve said since the very beginning of this program, the day when every family affected by the storm can be restored and made whole again cannot come soon enough.”
Build it Back, established by the Bloomberg administration in June 2013, was riddled with problems for its first eight months. Among the complaints were too much bureaucratic red tape, little community outreach, missed appointments and lost paperwork.
The de Blasio administration overhauled the program in April, installing a new head, Amy Peterson, and embedding staff in the offices of area officials, including the Howard Beach office of state Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr. (D-Howard Beach). Previously Howard Beach residents had to go to Rockaway or Brooklyn to access a Build it Back center.
Mayor de Blasio said he wanted to start construction on at least 500 homes by the end of summer. City Hall said last year they had met that goal.
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