Abstract
Hurricane Sandy struck the east coast of the United States on October 29, 2012, devastating communities in its path. In the aftermath, New York implemented a home buyout program designed to facilitate the permanent relocation of residents out of areas considered to be at risk for future hazards. While home buyout programs are becoming popular as policy tools for disaster mitigation, little is known about what factors influence homeowners to participate in or reject these programs. This study used mixed methods to assess the relationship between community resilience and the relocation decision in two heavily damaged communities in which the majority of residents made different decisions regarding whether or not to pursue a buyout. The sample was composed of residents from Oakwood Beach and Rockaway Park, both working-class communities in New York City, who participated via a community survey (N = 133) and/or in-depth interviews (N = 28). Results suggested that community resilience moderated the relationship between community of residence and the buyout decision, leading to opposite responses on the buyout decision. Contextual community factors, including the history of natural disasters, local cultural norms, and sense of place, were instrumental in explaining these different responses. Implications for disaster policy are discussed.
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Notes
The racial diversity and rental figures for Rockaway Park are influenced by a large low-income housing development that is located in the neighborhood.
Chi-square tests of independence were conducted using the original dataset.
The last major hurricane to hit Staten Island was the Great New England Hurricane of 1938, a category 3 storm that resulted in 700 deaths throughout New York and southern New England (Mandia 2013).
In some ways, a similar situation occurred in Rockaway Park with the construction of large public housing developments in the neighborhood. While some residents mentioned these housing development (always with negative connotations), the impact on the neighborhood as a whole did not seem to be internalized in the same way, perhaps because the public housing units were geographically isolated from the rest of the community.
There were qualitative differences in residents’ exposure to Sandy (flooding in Oakwood Beach, floods and fires in Rockaway Park, and higher reports of home damage in Oakwood Beach). However, the two items included in the exposure index (Would you say your home was severely damaged? Did you ever feel like your life was in danger?) were not significant predictors of the buyout decision when analyzed independently.
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Acknowledgments
We would like to extend our sincerest thanks to the survivors of Hurricane Sandy who participated in this study, for taking the time to share their grief, pain, and hope with us during an unimaginably difficult period in their lives. You have our deepest respect and gratitude. We would also like to acknowledge Ashley E. Maynard, Liesel A. Ritchie, and Michael B. Salzman for their guidance in this study. This study was funded in part by the Natural Hazards Center Quick Response Grant Program, which is funded by National Science Foundation Grant Number CMMI1030670.
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Binder, S.B., Baker, C.K. & Barile, J.P. Rebuild or Relocate? Resilience and Postdisaster Decision-Making After Hurricane Sandy. Am J Community Psychol 56, 180–196 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-015-9727-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-015-9727-x