A Year Later, Sandy Recovery Shows That Building Resilience Takes Time

Despite warnings of the threats posed by rising seas and more extreme storms in the years leading up to Hurricane Sandy, the New York region's preparations lagged behind where experts thought they should be. Has anything changed since Sandy?

1 minute read

October 25, 2013, 7:00 AM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


"One year after Hurricane Sandy hurled itself at the Eastern seaboard, causing more than $68 billion in damage and leaving millions of people in shock, communities are still reeling from the aftereffects," writes Ariel Schwartz. "It's fair to say that New York, New Jersey, and other hard-hit states were unprepared for the storm."

"But is the East Coast any better prepared now? What would happen if another Sandy hit the region tomorrow? Based on discussions with experts in a number of sectors affected by the storm, the answer is that not much has changed. It seems that creating a culture of resilience is an extremely slow process."

Schwartz reviews some of the lessons learned, and steps taken, to protect the electricity grid, critical buildings, water-dependent industries, and vulnerable coastline. 

Thursday, October 24, 2013 in Fast Company Co.Exist

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Close-up of "Apartment for rent" sign in red text on black background in front of blurred building

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program

Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

April 21, 2025 - Housing Wire

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

April 23, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Ken Jennings stands in front of Snohomish County Community Transit bus.

Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series

The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.

April 20, 2025 - Streetsblog USA

Wide roadway in Austin, Texas at night.

How Project Connect Would Change ‘The Drag’

A popular — and sometimes deadly — Austin road will exchange car lanes for light rail.

45 minutes ago - The Daily Texan

Google Street View of wide roadway flanked by green trees in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Milwaukee Road to Get Complete Streets Upgrades

The city will reduce vehicle lanes and build a protected multi-use trail including bioswales and other water retention features on its ‘secret highway.’

1 hour ago - Urban Milwaukee

Side view of layers of grass and soil

Tackling Soil Contamination With Nature-Based Solutions

Los Angeles County residents and experts are turning to nature-based methods like bioremediation to address long-standing and fire-exacerbated soil contamination without resorting to costly and disruptive removal.

2 hours ago - Los Angeles Times