Hurricane Sandy

The federal government will cover New York City’s entire cost of Hurricane Sandy-related recovery, according to a new report from the city’s Independent Budget Office seen by Crain’s.  [more]

Manhattan floods during Hurricane Irene

Flood insurance is no longer a concern solely for New Yorkers shopping for second homes in Florida; it’s for residents of Manhattan apartments, too. According to the Wall Street Journal, as the Federal Emergency Management Agency has updated its flood-zone maps to designate some New York City locales high-risk zones, banks have begun demanding that purchasers of pricey Manhattan condos buy flood insurance. [more]

It’s been three months since a tornado swept through the northern region of Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, and the park’s management is still working to rebuild the area. According to Anne Wong, the park’s director of landscape management, the recovery effort is far from over. The storm caused close to $150,000 worth of damages, with 40 trees knocked down and another 150 broken, thanks to winds gusting 80 miles per hour. After Gov. David Patterson declared a Federal Emergency Management Agency crisis in the area, the U.S. Forestry Service deployed their “Cherokee Hotshots,” a group of workers who assist in emergency clean-ups to collect the debris. … [more]