State approves Long Beach’s CRP plan

The state recently approved the Long Beach Community Reconstruction Program Planning Committee’s spending plan for the $25 million it was given to defend the barrier island against the next severe storm.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo hosted the 2014 NY Rising Community Reconstruction Conference on April 23, which detailed the progress that New York has made since not only Hurricane Sandy, but also Tropical Storms Irene and Lee. The conference included presentations that unveiled many of the 50 CRP plans across the state that are now one step closer to being put into action.

Long Beach’s planning committee will hold it’s fourth public engagement meeting on Monday, May 12, from 7 to 9 p.m., at the Public Library. Committee members will walk residents through the approved plan, and explain the next steps that will be taken in the coming months. While the state has approved the 205-page plan, CRP committee Co-chair John McNally said that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development must now approve each project before funds start to flow.

The New York Rising Community Reconstruction Program — separate from the NY Rising program for homeowners — was established by Cuomo in April 2013 to assist communities damaged by Sandy, Irene and Lee. It is funded almost entirely by over $600 millionin federal funds through the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery program. Long Beach is eligible for the maximum $25 million. Over the past eight months, committees comprising local civic leaders, experts and officials, developed rebuilding plans. The 12-member Long Beach committee was chosen last summer, and includes representatives from the West End, the Canals, North Park and other neighborhoods.