November 1, 2018
Home demolitions on Fire Island make way for controversial dunesBy Joan Gralla
Newsday
Work restoring dunes compromised by superstorm Sandy in 2012 is four years behind schedule, thanks to overbooked dredgers, winter storms and the complex process of acquiring land.
Rebuilding the dunes will prevent the ocean from overtopping Fire Island and threatening the mainland, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the lead agency on the project.
Yet, several scientists say the work will have the opposite result, weakening the island while failing to ward off mainland floods.
Though federal taxpayers are paying for the dunes, Suffolk County was charged with obtaining hundreds of easements, arranging home buyouts and, in some cases, figuring out how to relocate pools and decks. Buyout prices were based on current appraisals, as the federal government requires.Though federal taxpayers are paying for the dunes, Suffolk County was charged with obtaining hundreds of easements, arranging home buyouts and, in some cases, figuring out how to relocate pools and decks. Buyout prices were based on current appraisals, as the federal government requires.
Some homeowners fought the buyouts and 17 of the initial targets were spared. Some homeowners undertook major repairs after Sandy before learning about the plan. And some say they lost two summers while their houses sat empty.
“I spent $250,000 to rebuild and [elevate] the house, just so the government could rip it down," Dr. Emil Chynn, formerly of Ocean Bay Park, said by email. “The government should not have forced owners to sell until they were ready to demolish.”
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