Wayne collects grants to help with flood-prone areas

<p>Wayne Township is getting more money to help redevelop land prone to flooding.</p>

News 12 Staff

Nov 7, 2017, 2:26 AM

Updated 2,501 days ago

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Wayne Township is getting more money to help redevelop land prone to flooding.
The township is collecting a $2.4 million grant to demolish up to 14 homes. It is Wayne’s second FEMA grant in two years.
Many of the homes in Wayne were built along the banks of the Pompton River. Many have been damaged by flooding over the years and are now vacant.
“If they gave fair-market value, I would leave,” says Richard Nestinger, who has lived in Hoffman Grove section of Wayne all of his life.
Hoffman Grove has measured water levels in floods dating back to the 1960s. Nestinger says that one time, the flooding went all the way to the top of a nearby train trestle.
Wayne Township officials have applied for several FEMA grants over the years, receiving many. About 400 homes in flood areas have been bought out.
The land will be deed-restricted and returned to its "natural state,” as per FEMA guidelines.
Wayne Township has received more than $91 million in grants to help transition residents from flood-prone areas.