It’s initiatives such as this that have, in recent years, given the water engineers of Holland their almost mythical status amongst flood defenders the world over. After Hurricane Sandy hit New York, in 2012, the $20 billion protection plan that was subsequently instituted built upon principles that were pioneered by the Dutch. Officials from as far away as China, Vietnam, Thailand and Bangladesh are currently consulting Dutch experts. — telegraph.co.uk

“At the end of the day, we’re going to be in a better spot...You just stepped the entire gentrification of Ortley Beach forward five years because everything had to be rebuilt" - Eric J. Birchler, the owner of Birchler Realtors — NYT

Superstorm Sandy brought the Rockaways into the forefront of New Yorkers’ consciousness for a period of time, [...] subsequently as a key reference point in debates about rebuilding versus retreating from the flood zone. [...]

The last of these sites is Arverne East, 81 acres of City-owned land that have remained vacant since the neighborhood was razed in 1969. Below, Jonathan Tarleton and Gabriel Silberblatt consider Arverne East’s uncertain future. — urbanomnibus.net

Dutch water-management experts have done such a good job of protecting their country that they rarely get to practice with water crises — whereas America was facing something monumental that as a culture it didn’t yet grasp. When Donovan arrived back in the U.S., he opened an email from Ovink that said, in effect, “I hope this isn’t too forward, but could I come work with you?” — nytimes.com

The ten Rebuild by Design finalist teams spent the past eight months doing intensive research and engaging with local communities to find local and resilient solutions to rebuild the Eastern Seaboard cities affected by Hurricane Sandy...Each team presented their final proposals to the public at the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, NJ late last week.

Secretary Shaun Donovan of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will announce the winning projects later this spring. — bustler.net

Kate Orff wants to grow oysters in New York’s Jamaica Bay. Not for you to eat, but to save the shore from mighty storms. Great piles of mollusks will diffuse the energy of 10-to-15-foot waves, like those from Sandy that shattered boardwalks and beach homes and shot like missiles up city streets. — bloomberg.com

[...] officials viewed a tunnel plug under development by ILC Dover, a Department of Homeland Security vendor and supplier to NASA, to protect subway portals where grade level tracks transition to underground subways.

If successfully tested, the MTA hopes the technology could be applied to portals and stairwell locations throughout the system. The tunnel plug demonstrated inside the station is not designed for use inside the subway system, Cuomo's office said. — silive.com

The winners have been revealed for the ONE Prize 2013 international design competition! For this year's "Stormproof" theme, participants had to create smartly designed resilient cities ready to face the challenges of severe climate conditions. The competition, organized by Terreform ONE, drew submissions from 168 teams and 310 team members from more than 15 countries and five continents. — bustler.net

"what is unprecedented here is the capacity...people are going to have to wait...there is going to be contractor backlog" - Sammy Chu — NPR

I step out into the street but realize that I’d better not — there’s a current — and as my hallway fills, I remember the electrical panel in the basement. It shorts out, and I hear the breakers fall. Then there is an explosion outside, and the neighborhood goes dark. — Places Journal

Almost a dozen major architecture contests are underway. By calling in the pros, city and federal officials are casting a wide net for fixes.

“We don’t have all the good ideas, and I don’t care who does have them,” Mayor Bloomberg said recently. — New York Daily News

In a post yesterday, we already featured one of the ten submissions which emerged as Stage One Nominees in the Rebuild by Design competition. Here's now also the complete list of the shortlisted design teams as recently announced by the Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force. — bustler.net

The New York-Netherlands team, WXY + West 8, was shortlisted to advance to the Analysis and Design stages for the "Rebuild by Design" competition on August 9. Rebuild by Design is a four-stage regional competition to find locally contextual and resilient solutions to rebuild the Eastern Seaboard communities affected by Hurricane Sandy. — bustler.net

Four finalists have just been chosen from Phase I of the two-phase “For a Resilient Rockaway” (FAR ROC) design competition. The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), L+M Development Partners, The Bluestone Organization, Triangle Equities, American Institute of Architects New York Chapter (AIA New York) and Enterprise Community Partners, Inc. (Enterprise) made the announcement at the Center for Architecture in New York City. — bustler.net