PASS CHRISTIAN -- From small seaside town to small beachfront town, Mayor Matt Doherty of Belmar, N.J., flew down Wednesday for a tour of Pass Christian. Mayor Leo "Chipper" McDermott served as tour guide, and offered suggestions on hurricane recovery.
After Hurricane Sandy devastated parts of the East Coast in October, McDermott said he and his staff wanted to help out somehow. They began collecting donations. Because of a contact the Pass fire chief had in the town of Belmar, a truckload of supplies from Pass Christian was the first formal communication initiated.
After that, the mayors began emailing back and forth, and McDermott proposed Doherty visit the Gulf Coast and see firsthand how a town about the same size as Belmar had recovered after a disastrous hurricane.
"You can read it in the papers, but actually driving around and seeing it yourself gives you a real feel of what we can expect to see over the coming months and years," Doherty said.
In addition to being on the water, Pass Christian and Belmar have other commonalities. Both have populations of a little more than 5,000, and each community is without large corporations, so they rely heavily on small businesses.
Learning the lingo
McDermott shared with Doherty some of the facts and lingo he wished he had known after Hurricane Katrina slammed through the Pass, as well as some reconstruction advice and things to be on the lookout for.
"I think the main thing that Matt took away from his short visit with us was the terminology he needed to know when it comes to funding and how to secure things correctly," McDermott said.
Another item on the agenda for the men was the effects new flood maps could have on Belmar if they receive them. It isn't known whether that will happen for the New Jersey town, but McDermott offered advice because of the revised maps' effect on rebuilding here after Katrina, which led to stricter building codes.
A tour of the Pass took Doherty through the yacht club, the city's administration buildings and the picturesque shops downtown. He talked with business owners about their recovery since 2005. Then the mayors stopped for lunch at Shaggy's on the Beach for, of course, seafood.
"This being my first time here, I just wish it had been under better circumstances. But it is a beautiful community," Doherty said. "Folks who live here are blessed and I would love to bring my wife and daughters, who are 8 and 5, back to Pass Christian for a vacation.
"While this was more of a fact-finding mission, and a very informative one that I'm glad I came on, I can't wait to come back to visit again."
Read more here:
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/12/29/4380027/new-jersey-mayor-views-pass-christians.html#storylink=cpy
No comments:
Post a Comment