The mayor was on Staten Island Thursday to mark the three-year anniversary of Hurricane Sandy. He highlighted a family whose home was rebuilt through the city's Build it Back program and pledged to finish all repairs with Build it Back by the end of 2016.
The Barcia family has become a success story. After suffering extensive damage to their home during Hurricane Sandy three years ago, their house has now been rebuilt and elevated under the city's Build it Back program.
Many Staten Islanders have been critical of the government's slow response to those hurt by the storm.
"I didn't have really a problem," said Marylou Barcia. "It took us a year to finally get all the paperwork together. Then, they drilled the ground, tested things and did everything they had to do, and then they said they'd be ready to start soon."
Mayor Bill de Blasio says the news on recovery has greatly improved since he took office. 100 percent of reimbursements checks for some 5,300 families have now been distributed. The Build it Back program has begin construction on 2,000 homes citywide, completing 1,200 of them.
"Even though three years later, things are much better, we can't for a moment forget how much pain people went through. How much dislocation. How much fear," de Blasio said.
The mayor pledged to finish all repairs with Build it Back by the end of 2016. Local leaders stood with the mayor, even if they have been critical of City Hall's response previously.
"There are decisions that were made in the early weeks after the storm, that I will take to my grave, were the wrong decisions and set our community down a path that has been difficult to come back from," said Staten Island Borough President James Oddo.
Governor Andrew Cuomo has called for a moment of silence for the victims of Sandy, but he had no public events in New York City Thursday to mark the anniversary. That is a departure for him, since he has held events the last two anniversaries.