About 9,300 homeowners who were hardest hit by Superstorm Sandy will be getting extra federal funds to fix their damaged properties, Mayor Bloomberg announced today.
“We have received some very happy news from Washington this morning,” the mayor declared at City Hall.
He outlined plans for spending more than $1 billion of an initial $1.77 billion in federal storm relief.
Property owners were scheduled to get most of the funds, $720 million.
PHOTOS OF THE YEAR: HURRICANE SANDY
A massive $350 million was set aside for single-family rehabs; $250 million was going to “enhance the resiliency” of up to 12,970 apartments and another $120 million was headed to the Housing Authority, where back-up generators were to be installed at selected projects.
Eligibility details won’t be available until late April or early May, when the federal Department of Housing is expected to approve the city’s spending plan.
“We’re talking about the first stage of a plan that will bring a lot of relief to New York City,” explained the mayor. “We’re working as expeditiously as we can possibly do it.”
By government standards, he argued, the timetable was “instantaneous.”
Officials estimate that about 60,000 homes were impacted by Sandy and 20,000 still have “unmet needs.”
The mayor conceded there wasn’t enough money in this round to cover all the homes that require more help.
Brad Gair, the mayor’s housing recovery coordinator, said there would be a cap of how much each homeowner could receive. The cap has yet to be established.
He also said the extra federal funds would “net out” after homeowners have exhausted their own insurance and FEMA aid and produce evidence of their need.
“We’re not just going to send out checks,” the mayor said. “The government doesn’t back up a dump truck and dump bills on the ground.”
Another $185 million was allocated to help businesses recover from Sandy, including grants as high as $1 million to large companies.
The final $140 million in the city’s proposed package was designated for to jump start economic activity in five Business Recovery Zones and to fund a “Race to the Top” style competition for innovative “resiliency” measures proposed by utilities.