Politics & Government

About 6,000 Apply for Grants As Sandy Aid Centers Open

Two grant programs available for Sandy victims in nine counties

New Jersey’s nine state-run Sandy housing recovery centers have opened their doors.

The centers, run by the state Department of Community Affairs (DCA), are staffed to help victims of Superstorm Sandy apply for two rebuilding programs: the Reconstruction, Rehabilitation, Elevation and Mitigation, or RREM, program, as well as the Homeowners Resettlement Program.

The $600 million RREM program provides grants of up to $150,000 for homeowners whose primary homes were damaged by the storm. The grants can be used to repair, elevate or even rebuild destroyed houses.

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The $180 million resettlement program provides $10,000 grants to primary homeowners in order to encourage them to remain in their home counties. In many storm-impacted areas across the country, officials have said, residents fled affected towns and counties. The resettlement program is aimed at discouraging such flight in New Jersey.

Both programs are run under the banner of the “reNew Jersey Stronger” program, part of the $1.8 billion in initial round Community Development Block Grants allocated to New Jersey by the federal government in its $60 billion Sandy aid package.

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Richard E. Constable III, the DCA commissioner, met with Ocean County storm victims at the recovery center in Lakewood on Monday.  The Lakewood center, located in an industrial park on Vassar Avenue, had a slow-but-steady stream of aid applicants filtering in around 3:30 p.m. Monday.

More than 6,000 people have applied for both programs so far, Constable said.

Staff members greeted storm victims at the door and led them to meeting rooms for private, one-on-one conversations about their post-storm needs.

The centers also have computers where homeowners can fill out online forms and formally apply for funding.

“While we strongly encourage residents to continue to apply online and through our call center, I’m pleased that we are able to now provide in-person assistance for those individuals who need it,” said Constable, adding that DCA is also planning mobile outreach events closer to the coast.

 “We’re still in our infancy, we’re still training people, and we’ll be bringing more people on board” as additional federally-funded Sandy aid programs are made available, said Joan Greer, a DCA operations director.

Both programs have eligibility requirements – most importantly, that the Sandy-damaged home is the applicant’s primary residence. The state has also set aside 60 percent of the programs’ funding for low and moderate-income families, and every applicant must have registered for assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency after the storm struck.

Applicants’ residences also must have sustained at least $8,000 in damage or have been flooded by one foot of water or more.

There are no income limits to apply.

While many homeowners may choose to apply online or over the phone, many will find it helpful to begin the process with a one-on-one meeting, said Greer.

“Once someone is determined to be eligible, they will be assigned to a contractor, and we here at the center will kind of shepherd those people through the construction process,” she said. “Many people have never done a major remodeling or built a house from scratch themselves, and it can be a very daunting process. We know that everyone that had damage from the storm has already been through enough stress.”

Homeowners can apply for both grants at http://www.renewjerseystronger.org/ or by calling 1-855-SANDYHM. 

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Centers are located at:

  • Ocean: 750 Vassar Avenue, Lakewood
  • Atlantic: 500 Scarborough Drive, Suite 101, Egg Harbor Township
  • Cape May: 3860 Bayshore Road, Suite 5, North Cape May
  • Monmouth: 3 Paragon Way, Suite 150, Freehold Township
  • Middlesex: 1 Metroplex Drive, Edison
  • Union: 150 Morris Avenue, Suite 101, Springfield
  • Essex: 153 Halsey Street, Second Floor, Newark
  • Hudson: 438 Summit Avenue, Jersey City
  • Bergen: 140 E. Ridgewood Avenue, First Floor, South Tower, Paramus


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