City: Few options for car aid

Jan. 26--Two days after residents spoke of how losing their cars to the storm surge that flooded the Gloucester High parking lot Jan. 4 has affected their lives, city officials confirmed Thursday that at least one door and possibly others to offering them aid have closed.

City officials say they continue to seek alternative means of providing the 73 storm victims who lost their cars, and others who sustained other property damage, some means of help. The Jan. 4 storm brought a devastating 3- to 4-foot seawater surge that overwhelmed the Gloucester High lot where many residents had parked amid a citywide street parking ban.

The city's insurance carrier, the Massachusetts Interlocal Insurance Association, will not cover any of the damage to private vehicles or property, confirmed John Dunn, the city's chief financial officer, and James Destino, Gloucester's chief administrative officer.

The answer from MAIA was the same one the agency provided its client the town of Manchester, which saw a handful of residents lose their cars the same day when a rising tide in Manchester Harbor flooded the parking lot behind the Town Hall complex.

"They're the agent, and they insure with specific large companies, whether for liability or for auto, police liability and so on," Dunn said. "But a municipality does not insure non-municipally-owned property -- property for which it is not responsible." The mayor and other city officials have emphasized that the city offers residents the chance to park in school and other municipal lots during storms, but does not order people to park in specific locations.

Destino said that the administration is working "day and night" to try to find some means of providing assistance. But he remained skeptical Thursday that the city's overall storm damages -- including residents' lost vehicles -- would reach the regional threshold of damage affecting 300 to 400 homes or $2.7 million that could qualify the city for Federal Emergency Management Agency aid under a disaster declaration.

Other options not so easy

And he said some ideas being floated for potential aid are running afoul of state regulations.

Joel Emerson of Summer Street -- who lost his 2015 Subaru Impreza to the flood and has since replaced it with a 2008 Impreza, thanks to his insurance settlement -- has called for the city to explore covering deductible costs or perhaps waiving excise tax payments for those affected.

Ward 3 Councilor Steve LeBlanc, whose ward includes Gloucester High, said he thought those idea would be "worth looking into." Councilor at-Large James "Jamie" O'Hara said he's "open to any (potential aid) resolution that doesn't just say 'no.'"

But Destino said Thursday it's not that easy.

"We've made inquiries into the legalities of using taxpayer money for reimbursement -- which is really what that would be -- and the legal opinion is that you cannot use taxpayer money for any loss reimbursement or any cause that doesn't affect a benefit for the general public," he said. "It has to be not just for a few, but it would have to benefit the entire general public."

City Council President Paul Lundberg said he and other councilors have heard from residents who questioned those potential resolutions as well.

"We did get a few emails from people who thought the idea of paying out money from all city taxpayers to people who suffered damage but just didn't have comprehensive insurance might not be such a good idea," Lundberg said.

Questions of communication

Much of the talk at Tuesday night's hearing focused on what residents saw as a lack of communication on the part of the city during the crisis, but Destino said the city had sent out two notices through its RAVE emergency notification system. He also noted that, at the same time the cars were being overtaken by icy seawater in the Gloucester High lot, city and emergency crews were carrying out potentially lifesaving rescues and home evacuations, including from a basement apartment on Western Avenue and a first-floor residence on East Main Street.

"We certainly, certainly feel for people who lost property, we hear their frustration over their losses, and the city continues to work hard to see how best to handle this going forward," Destino said. "But you have to realize that, in this type of storm, our police, fire and emergency crews were dealing with life and death issues in terms of priorities. We had people stranded, people without power, and we had crews responding non-stop for 40 hours."

Emerson said he found little satisfaction in any city response to residents' concerns -- even after Tuesday night's hearing.

"The only satisfaction I got is, I learned I sure wasn't alone, and I was a lot better off than a lot of my neighbors," he said Thursday, adding he would "never again" park at Gloucester High during a storm where flooding might be a potential. "But I just feel like we're being dismissed, as in, 'Hey, we don't have insurance, there's nothing we can do.' I don't think that precludes the city from having a fundraiser or doing something of real consequence instead of giving us the chance to speak at a cathartic therapy session."

Emerson said he's also worried of one consequence the city may face down the line.

"I'm not saying me, but I've heard some people say that, the next time there's a storm like this, they're just going to leave their cars on the streets," said Emerson. The city calls for the parking ban so streets may be plowed for emergency vehicles and the public's safety.

"They're saying, 'Maybe we'll get towed, and we'd have to pay the tow -- but at least we'd have a car,'" he said. "This time, we all did what we were supposed to do, and now some of these people don't even have a car. That's something to think about."

Ray Lamont can be reached at 978-675-2705, or [email protected].

___

(c)2018 the Gloucester Daily Times (Gloucester, Mass.)

Visit the Gloucester Daily Times (Gloucester, Mass.) at www.gloucestertimes.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.