TRENTON – The Senate today gave final approval to bipartisan legislation Sen. Bob Gordon sponsored to give municipalities the ability use their locally-raised open space funds to purchase flood-prone properties.
“After the twin ravages of Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee, more and more residents and municipal leaders have realized that the cycle of flooding and rebuilding is no longer worth it, and that there needs to be a way out,” said Gordon (D-Bergen). “By giving towns the ability to use open space funds to purchase these properties, towns can help homeowners out of this vicious cycle, while also returning land to its natural state, which can hopefully buffer other homeowners from future floods.”