Sandy sinks Trump on the Ocean, proposed for Jones Beach

Donald Trump
Donald Trump

Due to damage from Hurricane Sandy, Donald Trump and state park officials today announced that the contentious beachside development known as Trump on the Ocean would be canceled, Newsday reported. Since its inception, Trump on the Ocean — a $24 million project that included a catering hall and restaurant on the Jones Beach boardwalk — had run into extended legal trouble. In June, the state allowed work to proceed, but the damage that Sandy brought to the boardwalk was the final straw. The excavation for the Trump project was flooded and the fence surrounding the site was demolished, raising worries about the possible effects of future natural disasters.

“Sandy has opened everyone’s eyes to the potential risks of building directly on the oceanfront,” said state parks Commissioner Rose Harvey. “Looking over the coming decades, as we face sea level rise and the threat of future damaging storms, we have concluded that building a major new facility directly on the oceanfront, on the scale of the Trump project, is not prudent policy.”

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Trump added that the decision to abandon the project was mutual. “This was a difficult decision for me to make as The Trump Organization was ready, willing and able to build and commence construction next year,” he said. [Newsday]Hiten Samtani