Facilitating recovery and resilience following Hurricane Sandy: Findings from an evaluation of a collaborative approach

Objective: Following Hurricane Sandy, the NYC Housing and Neighborhood Recovery Donors Collaborative (the Donors Collaborative) came together as a public-private partnership and provided funding to local organizations focused on recovery and resilience in low and moderate income communities.  An evaluation was conducted, assessing process and outcomes.

Study Design: Data for the evaluation came primarily from interviews with Donors Collaborative members and grantees and from grantee reports collected three times during the project period.

Findings: Grants totaling $3,255,000 were awarded to 34 organizations working in three program areas: Building Institutional Capacity and Fostering Best Practices in Climate Resiliency; Building Social Capital for High Risk Communities and Populations; and Accelerating Deployment of Recovery Programs for Low- and Moderate-Income People.  Evaluation findings include: (1) collaboration between private donors and city agencies facilitated communication regarding gaps in public funding and city responsibilities, allowing for targeting of donor resources to address those gaps; (2) building capacity among local organizations enabled quicker and more comprehensive engagement of residents; (3) given the steep learning curve and great need, partnership among community organizations and engagement of technical assistance providers and consultants, were valued by grantees across program areas; and (4) grantees encountered significant challenges related to governmental policy and practice, which were inconsistent with the needs in an urban environment that has significant multi-family housing and multiple building types.

Conclusions: The Donors Collaborative approach to recovery from Hurricane Sandy can inform response elsewhere and points to need for policy changes related to recovery in advance of future disasters.