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Buyout program extended to Staten Island’s Graham Beach
Program offers pre-storm value plus 10 percent incentive for Sandy-damaged homes
New York State’s Ocean Breeze Enhanced Buyout Area has expanded eligibility to Staten Island’s Graham Beach neighborhood.
Homes in the area, which extended to Jefferson Avenue to the West, Olympia Boulevard to the north, Father Capodanno Boulevard to the south and Naughton Avenue to the east will be eligible for buyout funds immediately, the Office of Storm Recovery told DNAinfo. The program offers homeowners the pre-storm value plus a 10 percent incentive for Sandy-damaged homes, though in some cases the state has so far paid more than double the estimated value.
“Offering the residents of Graham Beach a buyout makes sense given its topography, lack of infrastructure, proximity to the Bluebelt and continued vulnerability to the forces of nature,” James Oddo, Staten Island’s borough president, said in a statement to DNAinfo.
Bought-out homes in the area will be demolished and the land used for wetlands restoration to create natural coastal buffer zones, a storm recovery office spokesperson told the news site. The program has so far purchased 170 homes in Oakwood Beach for $70 million, and will soon begin buying 130 Ocean Breeze homes, the spokesperson said. [DNAinfo] — Julie Strickland