"Give (the money) to Sandy victims first and when all the victims are back in their homes, give it to someone's pet project," one official says. Watch video
A state program to lend more than $400 million in taxpayer dollars to replenish affordable housing lost during Hurricane Sandy so far has assisted fewer than two dozen victims of the storm, state statistics show.
The Fund for Restoration of Multifamily Housing began disbursing zero- and low-interest loans in 2014 in the nine counties most affected by Sandy, with the caveat that Sandy victims on limited incomes be given priority on the new rental units.
But of the 2,000 units completed with the help of the public money, only 15 are occupied by New Jersey residents whose homes were damaged or destroyed, according to the state Department of Community Affairs.
Critics contend the program, which has so far allocated to developers $413 million of $591 million, helps investors and builders more than people affected by the storm.
"Sandy money should be used to get people back in their homes," said John Ducey, mayor of Brick Township. "There wasn't any affordable housing affected here. Give (the money) to Sandy victims first and when all the victims are back in their homes, give it to someone's pet project."
See where the money went
Other local and state officials, as well as developers, dismissed the criticism and said the program revealed a silver lining of the storm: long-needed money to help address the state's serious lack of affordable housing.
The number of victims moving into the units was "predicted to be very, very low" from the start, said Anthony Marchetta, executive director of the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, which administers the program.
"Let's face it, the storm was three and a half years ago," Marchetta said. "Most people have already adjusted their living environment."
Developers, including for-profit and nonprofit companies as well as public housing authorities that receive the money, must give Sandy victims a 90-day priority when units go on the market and follow rules about notice and advertising.
Christina Stoltz, 55, said that outreach is lacking. Her Beach Haven West home was destroyed during the massive storm, and she has had to move in and out of several affordable housing apartments while waiting for it to be rebuilt.
Not far from where Stoltz lives now, in Barnegat, a new development is under construction with the help of $8.3 million in loans from the state program. But she said she had no idea people like herself could get priority when it's complete.
"I think it's a lack of knowledge," Stoltz said. "I'm positive people don't know about this. I'm involved in Sandy programs and I don't know about it. If I don't know about it, you know the public doesn't know about it. And that's horrible."
Money for the program was part of a $4.2 billion relief package awarded by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development to help the state recover and rebuild. A spokesman for the department declined comment.
The nearly 60 projects that have been awarded money, including 27 that are complete, will create approximately 4,000 units for low- and moderate-income families and senior citizens. The program also sets aside money for rehabilitation of public housing and administrative costs.
But from the start the program faced criticism over who it was benefitting most.
In 2013, Gov. Chris Christie's administration came under fire after The Star-Ledger reported it awarded millions to a proposed senior housing complex in Belleville even though the town sustained little damage. The award came shortly before the town's Democratic mayor endorsed Christie for re-election.
A follow-up review in 2014 found a third of the money that had been awarded was earmarked for projects in Essex and Middlesex counties, while many hard-hit shore communities in Ocean County saw relatively little of it. Later that year, the state adopted new rules to send more money there and Monmouth County.
Those changes also happened, in part, because of a settlement reached between the state and several affordable housing and minority advocacy groups that had filed a federal administrative complaint over the distribution of Sandy aid money.
A spokesman for one of those groups, the Fair Share Housing Center, a frequent adversary of the administration, declined comment on the number of victims living in the housing but said, overall, the organization was happy with the program.
"This was an incredible program to fund properly, to make sure New Jersey's working-class families weren't discluded from the recovery," the spokesman, Anthony Campisi, said.
And that's because, for advocates who had long fought for more affordable housing, the loans are a welcome catalyst. And builders say they were necessary help.
Brad Ingerman, a developer behind the $200 million transformation of a 55-acre abandoned glass factory in Aberdeen Township, said at an unveiling ceremony in April he never thought he would be "so thankful for a hurricane or superstorm."
"But Sandy money came along and it made the affordable housing aspect of this project viable," Ingerman said.
The site will soon feature 540 new residential units, including 110 affordable units financed with nearly $18 million in loans through the state program.
Determining whether the program is really helping Sandy victims or not is difficult because the state does not track how many are not back in their homes, said Amanda Devecka-Rinear, director of the New Jersey Organizing Project.
"I think it's outrageous," Devecka-Rinear said.
Recovery advocates estimate the number to be at least 5,000 based on how many households received aid money but have not yet been completed. That, however, does not include renters or people who did not receive aid from the state.
Lisa Ryan, a community affairs spokeswoman, confirmed the state does not keep tabs on victims. And nailing down an exact figure of how many people are still displaced is a "tough question to answer," said Jay Lynch, the planner for Toms River.
Still, he said the town's pleased with the results: One complex has been completed there with help of the program, and several more are in the pipeline.
"It became a very efficient way to provide much needed housing," Lynch said.
NJ Advance Media reporter Stephen Stirling contributed to this report.
Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.