New Bill Could Bring More Money to the State for Disaster and Flood Mitigation

On Friday morning, the corner of Newark and Garden Streets was sunny, dry and — in the words of U.S. Senator Bob Mendendez — "the way we want it to be all the time."

The intersection is one of the most flood prone in the city and was hard hit during both hurricanes Irene and Sandy.

For days during the direct aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the block wasn't passable, the businesses on that corner were destroyed and a mix of sewerage and rain water stood stagnant in the street.

"A Hoboken that was so dark and so flooded for so long," said Menendez, "cannot easily be forgotten."

With that in mind, Menendez joined local officials Mayor Dawn Zimmer, Hoboken's Congressman Albio Sires and Hudson County Freeholder Anthony Romano on Friday morning to announce a new bill in front of the senate right now.

The bill is supposed to free up more federal money that can be used to mitigate and prevent flooding damage to individuals, businesses and other entities across the state. The bill would mean a 4 percent increase to the current available pool of money under the Safe Building Code Incentives Act of 2012.

The bill would bring more hazard mitigation money to New Jersey. 

Currently, New Jersey is only one of 16 states in the country that adheres to international building codes. The bill would free up more hazard mitigation funding for those 16 states.

The International Association of Fire Chiefs and other safety organizations have endorsed the bill, said Menendez.

The extra money that would be made available, would enable families and business owners to prepare their properties for any future damage "without putting a burden on (them)," said Menendez.

Chris Escudero, the owner of Legal Beans, the coffeeshop located on the corner of Newark and Garden that was destroyed during Sandy, attended Friday morning's press conference and said the road to recovery had been a long one.

"I'm so proud of the people in New Jersey," Menendez said.

Sires said it's not clear yet when the bill will be voted on by the Senate, but added he hopes it will be soon.