Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Office of Storm Recovery along with the Center for NYC Neighborhoods have recently announced plans to expand its current FloodHelpNY Home Resiliency Audit Program to include low- and moderate-income homeowners in parts of South Brooklyn that weren’t previously included.
The audit program, which was launched in 2016, allows homeowners living in specific flood-prone neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens to work with professional plumbers, engineers, and the like to work together to determine the best way of retrofitting the home to keep insurance costs as low as possible. From there, resiliency counselors go about finding New York City homeowners the most accurate flood insurance quotes possible.
The expansion of the Home Resiliency Audit will allow for 2,500 low- and moderate-income homeowners to take part. Additionally, the program offers free backwater valve installation to those who qualify as a way to reduce the potential for sewage backups caused by floods into their homes.
“We are tremendously excited to be working with the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery to expand our Home Resiliency Audit Program to additional coastal communities that are facing the dual threat of rising flood insurance rates and sea levels,” said Christie Peale, Executive Director of the Center for NYC Neighborhoods. “By also offering eligible homeowners free backwater valve installations, we can help homeowners save thousands of dollars in repair costs in the case of future floods.”
Neighborhoods now incorporated into the program include Brighton Beach, COney Island, Gerritsen Beach, Manhattan Beach, Seagate, and Sheepshead Bay.
In the meantime, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is working with city officials to revise New York City’s flood maps, which haven’t been updated since 1983.
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