Council Pres: 'Focus Has Shifted to Recovery and Rebuilding'

The following column was submitted by Toms River Township Council President George Wittmann:

The council has been busy on a number of fronts trying to get the town back into shape after Sandy. The focus has shifted to recovery and rebuilding, and to that end we have a number of projects underway to rebuild the township infrastructure.

The barrier island area of the township requires a significant capital investment of approximately $38 million. The  projects include  road reconstruction and drainage in Ortley Beach for $11.6 million, the reconstruction of roads and drainage in the northern beach areas for $13.8 million, boardwalk and beach replenishment $3.45 million, replacement of township buildings $5.8 million, replacement of bulkheads $1.4 million and the damage to repair park facilities $1.76 million. A good portion of these funds will come from insurance, and we expect that we will receive funds from FEMA for the balance of the damage which can range from 75 to 90 percent of the cost depending upon the final reimbursement levels.

The township is also taking part in a FEMA authorized program to provide for the demolition of homes on private property and removal of debris related to Sandy. This program is currently out for bid and the town has a list of over 250 homeowners that want to participate in the program. There is a requirement that homeowners that have insurance reimburse FEMA for the amount covered by insurance and the application process is somewhat lengthy. The idea is to get as many homes removed before the start of the summer season and to remove debris from sites as it presents a hazard to the public. The township will be authorizing $11 million for this work, and expect to be reimbursed by the FEMA for between 75 and 90 percent of the cost.

We are also working with the utility companies to restore all of the utilities to homes in the barrier island and in particular Ortley Beach. Some of the work is predicated on the reconstruction of the roads which I mentioned earlier in this article and we will make every effort to expedite the work.

The township is also grappling with the budget as we have lost approximately 20 percent of our ratable base and this obviously has a major impact on our ability to deliver services. The township is applying for grants from the state for extraordinary aid, and we are cautiously optimistic that these funds will be forthcoming.

The FEMA interim guidance maps has caused a serious problem for this town, and the township has expressed to FEMA on a number of occasions and venues that these maps are in our opinion wrong and place too many areas of the township in a V zone. We have been forced to adopt these interim maps, but our position is that they are inaccurate and not realistic.

The town has scheduled a seminar on home elevation techniques for March 23 at Toms River East High School, and will have three presenters at the meeting that can answer questions related to techniques for raising homes in both an A and a V zones. The presenters include a structural engineer, a firm involved with Katrina, and company that has developed a helical pile foundation that is able to be installed underneath an existing home in a V zone.

We recognize that the requirement to raise homes is in some cases impractical from a financial standpoint for many of the residents and the town has applied for the FEMA Hazard Mitigation program that provides grants to homeowners to help them raise their homes. In addition we expect the state to provide funding in the way of block grants to allow homeowners to obtain grants to raise their homes from this program.

Finally the town is trying to work with the private homeowners and beach associations to grant easements to the Army Corps of Engineers and the Township to allow for the construction of a proper sand dune and beach along the ocean. Professor Miller of the Stevens Institute of Technology stated at a meeting that the breach at the Mantoloking Bridge during Sandy caused the bay to rise upwards to 3 feet. If this dune is constructed the town would be protected against future hurricanes and the Army Corps of Engineers would maintain the beach and the dunes for a 50 year period.

I urge all of our residents to write to our governor and state legislators, and ask them to provide a solution that mandates that these easements be granted or require the recalcitrant beach owners to pay for the proper dune and beach to protect the public.