May 13, 2014 -Sandy Recovery- Christie Administration Announces Post-Sandy Planning Grant to Aberdeen Township
Christie Administration Announces Post-Sandy Planning Grant to Aberdeen Township
Grant Will Help Sandy-Impacted Local Government with
Long-Term Recovery and Resiliency Planning
Trenton, NJ – In the Christie Administration’s ongoing effort to promote sound, sustainable long-term recovery from Superstorm Sandy, New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) Commissioner Richard E. Constable, III today announced the award of a $50,000 Post-Sandy Planning Assistance Grant to Aberdeen Township in Monmouth County. The municipality will utilize the grant award to prepare a Master Plan Reexamination Report to enable the community to become more resilient in the event of future significant weather events.
This is the second Post-Sandy Planning Assistance Grant awarded to Aberdeen, which is located on the Raritan Bay and suffered substantial Sandy-related damage. The Township was awarded its first planning grant in October 2013, and used the $20,000 grant to complete a Strategic Recovery Planning Report, which serves as the primary guide for actions it takes moving forward to recover from Sandy and to reduce its vulnerability to future disasters. The Strategic Recovery Planning Report determined Aberdeen’s need for the Master Plan Reexamination Report.
“We applaud Aberdeen for undertaking this re-examination of its master plan to prepare for the long-term health and safety of their community,” said Commissioner Constable, whose Department is administering many of the Sandy Recovery programs for the State. “Aberdeen is among the first local governments to be awarded a second phase planning grant, which allows communities to address very specific challenges they are facing.”
The Master Plan Reexamination Report will evaluate the existing Township Master Plan and Land Development Ordinance and offer recommended amendments to implement post-Sandy strategies and policies related to hazard mitigation, community resiliency and sustainability. According to the Township’s grant application: “This effort will include the evaluation and mapping of current land uses, new Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) floodplain and wetland mapping, critical community facilities, and important natural resource areas.”
The Township’s Cliffwood Beach neighborhood was devastated by the storm, with scores of homes suffering significant flood- and wind-related damage. The Township’s waterfront, which provides a number of public and private recreational amenities, was also significantly affected by the storm. Finally, much of the existing public infrastructure located along the Township’s waterfront and tidal waterways were damaged or destroyed by Sandy.
The Post-Sandy Planning Assistance Grants are funded through Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery monies provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The $5 million program is available to each of the nine counties most impacted by Sandy as determined by HUD (Atlantic, Bergen, Cape May, Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean and Union) and all of the municipalities within those counties that have experienced a ratable loss of at least 1% or $1 million due to the storm.
Applications for grants are still being accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis by the DCA’s Office of Local Planning Services, which is administering the program, until all funds are exhausted.
For more information on Post-Sandy Planning Assistance Grants, go to http://www.nj.gov/dca/services/lps/pspag.html.
Lisa Ryan
Sean Conner
(609) 292-6055
