Sunday, April 28, 2013
Insurance companies blame 2011's Tropical Storm Irene, Halloween nor'easter — not Sandy — for highest in nation auto rate increase.
New Jersey motorists, who currently pay among the highest rates for auto insurance now, are going to have to dig a bit deeper into their wallets to pay for increases in auto insurance, according to published report Sunday. Insurers and state regulators are saying Hurricane Sandy, which devastated portions of the state including the Jersey Shore, is not the reason for state approving rate increases for 26 insurers thus far in 2013, according to a NorthJersey.com report. Instead, officials blame the rate increases on losses related to Tropical Storm Irene and the Halloween nor’easter from two years ago, medical costs that continue to rise, reinsurance expenses and dim forecasts of investment income, the report said. Allstate, New Jersey …
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Officials said they would make a second request for bids and expand their search.
The search for a new emergency generator at the Washington Township Municipal Complex will continue in hopes of finding a more reasonable price, officials decided this week. The council voted this week to reject the four bids the township had received for a new generator. The bids came in between $148,000 and $196,000, according to Mayor Janet Sobkowicz. Officials had estimated the generator would cost closer to $115,000, township Administrator Catherine Navarro-Steinel said. Sobkowicz said they hoped to reach a wider field of bidders this time because they added the Star-Ledger to the list of official newspapers, allowing them to place an ad there. The township has been renting a generator ever since the old one spewed carbon monoxide …
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Seven power substations and one gas metering facility in Bergen County will be fortified against storms as part of the plan, which was developed after Hurricane Sandy caused extensive power outages.
PSE&G announced a $3.9 billion planWednesday which the utility said will "proactively protect and strengthen its electric and gas systems against increasingly frequent severe weather conditions" like Hurricane Sandy. The upgrades will help make PSE&G's easier to restore after storms cause outages and "modernize" its gas distribution, according to a company press release. The plan includes an upgrade for the Hillsdale substation on Patterson Street, which flooded during Hurricane Irene. More than 40 installations across New Jersey would be protected as part of the plan, including seven power substations and one gas metering and regulating facility in Bergen County to be "raised or fortified." Besides Hillsdale, the Bergen facilities are …
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
The borough purchased three other flood-prone homes with grant money from FEMA and the DEP last month.
Westwood officials voted to purchase a fourth flood-prone home with grant money during their council meeting Tuesday. The borough closed on three other flood-prone homes using grant money from FEMA and the Department of Environmental Protection last month. The first three houses cost about $1.1 million of the approximately $2 million in grants the borough received. The next house the borough will purchase is 23 Nugent Place. The home was appraised in the mid $400,000s, but the exact price to be paid has not yet been determined, according to Borough Administrator Robert Hoffmann. FEMA's formula, which subtracts some money previously paid for repairs, will have to be applied before the final price is set, he said. Officials said they …
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
FEMA and the DEP provided grants to the borough for buyouts after Hurricane Irene hit in 2011.
Updated at 3:45 p.m. Thursday Westwood closed on three flood-prone properties last week, allowing homeowners who had been in limbo since Hurricane Irene to finally move on with their lives. The borough closed on 55 and 46 Harding Avenue Thursday morning and 60 Harding Avenue Friday morning, according to Borough Administrator Robert Hoffmann. The purchases were made with a portion of $2,068,057 in grants, including about $1.5 million from FEMA and the rest from the Department of Environmental Protection's Green Acres program. As a part of the buyout program, FEMA required the borough to have the homes appraised, which set the prices to be paid. Grant money was also used to cover costs like the appraisers. The amounts paid for the three …
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
The process of purchasing flood-prone homes has taken more time than it needed to because of changing state requirements, according to borough officials.
Hundreds of man-hours have been spent on a project to purchase flood-prone homes in Westwood, but continual changes from state officials have caused numerous delays in the process, borough officials said Tuesday. In the meantime, several local families have been temporarily displaced or are living in their homes with short-term repairs since Hurricane Irene hit more than a year ago. Eight homeowners are waiting to see if they are picked for one of the buyouts. Westwood has a little more than $2 million from state and federal grants to spend on the project. "This has been a frustrating and burdensome process," Mayor John Birkner said. According to Birkner, borough staff have spent almost 400 man-hours on the project so far, and it may take …
Friday, September 28, 2012
Westwood, and other towns participating in buyouts of flood-prone homes, are currently responsible for school and county taxes for the properties.
A new bill will provide tax relief for municipalities which participate in buyouts of flood-prone homes, if state lawmakers pass it. Currently, towns like Westwood which are using state and federal grant money to purchase flood-prone homes will be responsible for paying the school and county taxes for the year in which the purchase is made. Borough officials previously told Patch this could cost between $22,000 and $49,000 next year, when the purchases will likely be made. Westwood Mayor John Birkner previously described the tax as "a burden on the municipality." Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi introduced a bill (A-3362) this week which would relieve towns of the tax burden by making the properties tax exempt upon the date of purchase. Homes …
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Westwood and Hillsdale residents whose homes flooded during Hurricane Irene are still worried about flooding one year after the storm hit.
One year ago, Hurricane Irene blew through the Pascack Valley and caused some of the worst flooding in local history, damaging hundreds of homes and temporarily displacing some families. Local governments spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair roads and clean up public areas. Residents reported depths ranging from a few inches to several feet of water in their homes, as did some business owners. Flooding was particularly bad in the area around Harding Avenue in Westwood and Beechwood Drive in Hillsdale, where several homeowners are now participating in government buyout programs. Hundreds of homes in Westwood reported flooding from Irene, according to Camille LoBello of the Hillsdale and Westwood Flood Solution Group, an …
Thursday, July 19, 2012
The Westwood Council approved the funding during their meeting this week. The money was supplied by FEMA and the DEP.
As many as nine flood-prone homes in Westwood may be knocked down. The Westwood Council approved an ordinance appropriating more than $2 million to buy and demolish homes that have repeatedly been damaged by flooding during their meeting Tuesday. "Hopefully some people will be able to put their lives back together," Mayor John Birkner said. How many of the nine homes will actually purchased is still undecided. During their meeting, the council awarded a contract to Miller, Rinaldi & Co. to appraise the homes at a cost of $350 per property and $175 per hour if any additional work is required. The borough received a total of five bids for the project. Once the appraisals are done, officials will determine how many of the homes they can …
Monday, July 16, 2012
The council is scheduled to vote on an ordinance which will appropriate more than $2 million in grants to purchase flood-prone homes.
The Westwood Council is scheduled to vote on an ordinance which will set aside more than $2 million to buy flood-prone homes at their meeting this week. The borough received a total of $2,068,057 in grants from FEMA and the Department of Environmental Protection's Green Acres Program for the purchases. FEMA set aside $21 million for flood mitigation purchases in New Jersey after Hurricane Irene caused major flooding last year. The state added another $7 million for the project. Westwood officials previously said as many as nine homes could be purchased with the money, though they did not definitely know how many or which of the homes would be purchased with the money. The council is also scheduled to award a bid for appraisal services for …
Peggy Davison
1:17 pm on Thursday, May 2, 2013
Thanks for the link Chris! After reading the article, I too am confused as to why our rates are so high, and rising. It simply does not make any sense! more ›