There are numerous Sandy rebuilding programs in place for homeowners and businesses throughout the region. Two large ones that launched last year with federal dollars are New Jersey's Reconstruction, Rehabilitation, Elevation and Mitigation initiative and New York City's Build It Back. While each program had contentious beginnings, both appear to be gaining momentum.
Critics of the New Jersey program contend it took a lawsuit filed against the state and the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development to get the ball rolling. The Cherry Hill, N.J.-based Fair Share Housing Center and other advocacy groups filed suit last year, claiming a lack of transparency on funding for low-income housing.