Hurricane Sandy devastated the Staten Island neighborhood of Oakwood Beach, where 43 people lost their lives. What recovery plans were available to the town? Did it have a history of flooding? Who lived there? Has the town recovered, or been transformed in some fundamental way? Which lots were most affected? And what differences were there in the impact on different lots by factors such as location and assessed value?
This project delves into these questions as it explores the story of Oakwood, a neighborhood plagued with flooding and planning problems for decades. For the survivors of Sandy, it is a success story where the state finally stepped in with a buy out and wetlands reseeding plan that the majority of residents were thrilled to receive, though it left some steadfast owners isolated in a transformed landscape. This website reveals when and which homes were demolished, and offers many interactive features that reveal hidden patterns in Oakwood's profound transfomation.
My role in this research project is a preliminary data analyst, leading web programmer, and interactive data visualier designer. During this intensive one-month project, I learned the process of building a website from an initial drawing sketch to a final interactive deliverable. Also, through addressing all the challenges during the website development, I gained the ability to adopt the appropriate tools and methods to achieve the best results, even though limited by the time, data, and resources. In addition, a great experience from this project was to work with my teammates in terms of design discussion, coding collaboration, and quality improvement in the Github environment.