STAFFORD — If Joe Karcz had gone with his gut, he’d be home by now, instead of staring at his empty lagoon-front lot in Stafford Township. A disabled construction worker, Karcz, whose home was badly damaged by Hurricane Sandy’s storm surge, first thought he’d rehab it on his own, but then decided to get the funding… Read the rest of this entry »

Thomas J Largey of Sea Bright questions Governor Christie abouth Hammerman & Gainer Inc at Middletown Town Hall Meeting on Feb 20,2013. Asbury Park Press Editor Randy Bergmann in background.

TRENTON —The state is paying a fired Hurricane Sandy housing recovery contractor another $7 million to settle a dispute over $21 million the company insisted it was owed after fewer than eight months of services that were plagued by stagnation, delays and inefficiencies. The state Department of Community Affairs announced the settlement with Louisiana-based Hammerman &… Read the rest of this entry »

A bill that aims to address ongoing problems raised by homeowners and advocates about New Jersey’s handling of Hurricane Sandy relief aid cleared the state Senate on Monday. The bill ( S2825), which was introduced by Senate President Stephen Sweeney in March, requires the state to give applicants in certain grant programs personalized timelines showing when… Read the rest of this entry »

It’s almost summer and the Jersey Shore people left homeless by Hurricane Sandy are on the move again, leaving winter rentals as seasonal rents skyrocket. “It’s a problem up and down the coast,” said Amanda Devecka-Rinear of the New Jersey Organizing Project, which helps people bound in the red tape of Sandy recovery. “We’re talking about… Read the rest of this entry »

MINEOLA, N.Y. — A $24 billion sea of red ink has millions of Americans in vulnerable flood zones, including homeowners still struggling to recover from Hurricane Sandy, facing steep increases in flood insurance premiums. New legislation that went into effect this month — the second time in two years Congress has tweaked the troubled National Flood… Read the rest of this entry »

New Jersey had to withdraw and resubmit a request to modify a federal emergency grant awarded after Hurricane Sandy 15 times due to technical glitches with the grant’s online system and incomplete information during a seven-month delay in approval that put cleanup efforts at risk, according to an audit released on Monday. The federal audit said… Read the rest of this entry »

TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie’s “randomly” chosen question from a Boy Scout at a town hall meeting last week wasn’t left entirely to chance, though luck did play a small part. In Freehold last Tuesday afternoon, the governor took a question from 12-year-old Zachary Seemar, a Boy Scout from Brick Township whose family lost its home… Read the rest of this entry »

In an area of the Jersey Shore most devastated by Sandy, a power company is forcing many homeowners who rebuilt their houses higher to spend thousands of dollars to also raise the utility poles and electric lines. One homeowner had to pay $20,000, after the stand-off stopped his rebuilding for months, he said. It’s not clear… Read the rest of this entry »