A Rockaway church still recovering from Sandy sustained more damage when an SUV slammed into its wall earlier today, according to published reports. The driver, a 49-year-old man from Brooklyn, was allegedly heading down Beach Channel Drive around 3 a.m. when he lost control of his vehicle and crashed into Arverne Pilgrim Church, destroying one [...]
A nonprofit is helping Queens Library get back on its feet by putting books back on its shelves. The Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City is giving a $250,000 grant to the Queens Library Foundation to replace more than 140,000 books and other library materials that were damaged by Sandy. “Our public libraries provide [...]
People still dealing with Sandy-related insurance problems got a little help when the state Department of Financial Services (DFS) came to town. A DFS Mobile Command Center set up shop on Cross Bay Boulevard on Thursday, March 21 to help with insurance needs in the wake of Sandy. About 15 to 20 people were helped [...]
It’s been five months since 77-year-old Arquilla Heard has been able to make a phone call. Since Sandy, the Far Rockaway resident — and many of her neighbors in the Ocean Bay Houses — have had no cell phone service from Verizon. Heard has received monthly phone bills since the storm, some reaching nearly $200. [...]
Southeast community leaders and clergy members joined Congressmember Gregory Meeks at the first meeting for the new 5th Congressional District. Having not met since before Sandy, Meeks and the crowd of over 100 area residents spoke about the devastation brought on by the storm, as well as the Congressmember’s work in Washington, D.C. since reclaiming [...]
By day 143, Rockaway residents had had enough. Scores traveled to the steps of City Hall on Saturday, March 23 to call on Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the city to help residents rebuild after Sandy. Shoulder to shoulder with elected officials and candidates for mayor and borough president, resident after resident told personal stories of [...]
BY ANTHONY O’REILLY Five months after Sandy damaged thousands of residences in New York City, the NYC Rapid Repairs program has completed work on more than 20,000 homes, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced today. The program was launched last November in the aftermath of the storm in order to provide heat, power and hot water to those [...]
Some Howard Beach residents want to make sure a local park is cleaned up before future development comes in. Frank M. Charles Memorial Park, part of Gateway National Recreation Area and heavily damaged by Sandy, was listed as a site for potential concession stands, kayak launch bays or bike terminals in a request for proposal [...]
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has approved a 21-day extension of the Transitional Sheltering Assistance (TSA) program for Sandy victims, Governor Cuomo announced Wednesday. “The Transitional Sheltering Assistance program continues to be an essential resource for the New Yorkers who were hit hardest by Sandy,” said Cuomo. “This extension allows them to have a [...]
Co-ops and condos damaged by Sandy are now eligible for federal housing grants. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced it will allow co-ops and condos to receive funding from Community Development Block Grants Disaster Recovery grants to help with repairs. “We have finally cleared a bureaucratic hurdle that prevented thousands of [...]
