Middletown Gets Grant For Sandy-Related Code Enforcement

Middletown has received a $100,000 state grant to “augment code enforcement and building inspections for Sandy-damaged properties,” officials said.

Hundreds of homes in town were damaged by Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

Some have been repaired and elevated, work is underway at others, and still others have been abandoned.

The grant money will be used to hire more code enforcement staffers.

“The township is experiencing near unprecedented levels of construction activity which has stretched our staff very thin,” Construction Official Joseph Kachinsky said in a prepared statement.

Those staffers will monitor abandoned sites to make sure they are properly maintained, and they will inspect sites that are being repaired, officials said in a news release.

“We’ll also be able to give homes that are under reconstruction expedited inspections. We want to do whatever we can to speed up the rebuilding process for our residents who have already been displaced and inconvenienced far too long,” Mayor Stephanie Murray said in a prepared statement. “We appreciate that the state has recognized the need to help municipalities provide specialized assistance to Sandy-impacted residents and property owners. We think this will go a long way towards helping our community to fully rebuild.”