To the long list of complaints that has bedeviled the city's Build it Back program, add this one: When the program concludes next year, the city will have paid billions of dollars to rehab homes damaged by Sandy, but at least 3,500 of them will still be vulnerable to flooding from the Next Big One.
These homes were built before anyone thought the neighborhoods were at risk of flooding. A few years ago, they were added to updated flood maps. That means experts think they have at least a 1 percent chance of flooding in any given year.
The city paid to repair these homes, but not to raise them higher off the ground where they would be above the flood waters. The city offered to rebuild or elevate homes only where the repair work was estimated to cost more than 50 percent of the pre-storm market value. These homeowners also face large flood insurance bills because of the newly recognized risk.
Sandy hit Oct. 29, 2012. Nearly five years later, Amy Peterson, director of the Mayor's Office of Housing and Recovery Operations, said the city couldn't elevate everyone's home. Still, officials wanted to help homeowners that didn't have flood insurance.
"The city has tons of waterfront communities. These are affordable communities where people buy their first homes where people have lived for generations. these are places that we want to be able to continue to be these communities," Peterson said.
Raising utilities can also minimize future damage, she added.
Build it Back was the program the city developed after Sandy to administer federal funds to rebuild damaged homes.
Build It Back Homes Newly In Flood Zones That Weren't Elevated
Darker purple indicates more homes that weren't elevated by Build It Back.
More than 8,100 homes went through the single family home program, according to data the city provided this month. About 15 percent of those are still having work done or awaiting payment. The city expects to finish the program early next year.
About 1,330 homes will ultimately be elevated or entirely rebuilt, the data shows.
To hear WNYC reporter Robert Lewis talking to All Things Considered host Jami Floyd about the program, click on the audio player above.