CHRISTIE ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCES SUPERSTORM SANDY BLUE ACRES
ACQUISITION MEETING IN MANVILLE
BUYOUTS HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED SO FAR BY 320 HOMEOWNERS IN SIX TOWNS, WITH
175 CLOSINGS COMPLETED

(14/P106) TRENTON – The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will hold a kickoff meeting for more than 100 homeowners in Manville who have been approved for the state’s Blue Acres acquisition program, Commissioner Bob Martin announced.

The informational meeting, open only to invited homeowners, will be held on October 14. Residents will be provided with details on the buyout program and be matched with case managers who will work with them throughout the process.

The Superstorm Sandy Blue Acres Program, which was launched in May 2013, purchases homes from willing sellers at pre-Sandy market values and allows participants the opportunity to rebuild their lives after the devastation of the storm outside of flood-prone areas. The homes identified for purchase in Manville include some which were flooded by Hurricane Irene and other storms prior to Sandy.

“The Christie Administration is very happy that the Blue Acres buyout program is expanding to Manville,” said Commissioner Martin. “The Governor’s pledge to help residents in flood-prone neighborhoods move out of harm’s way and restart their lives is being realized in several communities throughout the state. Our goal remains to get as many families out of harm’s way as possible.”

Manville joins Sayreville, South River, Woodbridge, East Brunswick, Lawrence, Newark, Old Bridge and Linden as a flood-ravaged community that will benefit from the Christie Administration’s federally funded buyout effort, which is seeking to purchase as many as 1,300 homes in flood-damaged and flood-threatened areas, to get residents out of harm’s way and create natural buffers to protect against future storm events.

So far, 320 homeowners have accepted buyouts offered in the Blue Acres program. DEP has closed on purchases of 175 homes, and 71 homes have been demolished.

Manville Blue Acres home buyouts will be funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, administered by the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management and the DEP Blue Acres Program.

In addition to FEMA, post-Sandy Blue Acres buyouts are funded through U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery grants, with additional funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Natural Resources Conservation Service and the state Green Acres Program

The DEP has created a special team for its Blue Acres Buyout Program to work closely with sellers and process their applications as quickly as possible. The team reaches out to individual homeowners personally and guides them through the acquisition process.

Homeowners interested in selling their homes or who have questions about the buyout program may contact the DEP’s Blue Acres Program at (609) 984-0500.

For more information on the Blue Acres Program, visit: http://www.state.nj.us/dep/greenacres/blue_flood_ac.html