Manhattan businesses struggle to recover after Sandy

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-- three weeks since sandy pummeled the northeast and people still struggling today Vice President Biden visiting areas torn apart by the storm.

Biden taking a helicopter tour of her new Jersey's damaged coastline meeting with first responders and seaside heights.

Stopping on the boardwalk there saying he understands the need to rebuild along the shore the vice president also traveling north and visiting Hoboken.

And from Jersey to parts of Manhattan particularly downtown were businesses flooded things are tough.

Store owners there really suffering seeing a lot less foot traffic and fewer sales and a claimant is in the beauty -- fork area.

Which looks a lot different than it did before super -- Santa -- It certainly does hair's good evening to you and good evening to everybody at home according to a brokerage company about a quarter.

Of the office space here in lower Manhattan is unusable at the moment because of -- storms in the aftermath.

They have no power no water and no -- we -- in this historical area many of the buildings built in the seventeen hundreds and eighteen hundred's normally full of tourists but -- you -- now.

It's Jack -- you hear the hum of generators and -- also.

Pumping out water -- we did talk to one business owner who has the bike rental shop he says he's not sure -- his business.

Is going to survive you've got from about a hundred Reynolds today did just -- What's come out fifth fifth fifth fifth we wish to stay and so we don't know we really -- business is based on stories and so it doesn't make sense.

To hang around for a year making very little.

And some residential and hours and business towers don't even have.

Re open dates that get -- in they're telling us that it could be months here.

Yeah all those people out of work -- those owners struggle to you.

This is an area of Manhattan though that has seen disaster before.

-- over the last eleven years this area's been evacuated some three times of course the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Hurricane Irene last year and then -- and sandy and that we're told by community leaders here downtown that about 35% of businesses.

Do indeed have the business interruption insurance but of those that -- -- they're having a hard time.

Accessing it of course the resilience of this community has been tested before like with the 9/11 terrorist attacks the community leaders say.

They will come back stronger than ever.

After 9/11 we have our Manhattan -- -- sixteen acre hole in the heart of our neighborhood and we -- pick up the pieces that we did we go to.

We've been down this road before it's gonna take a long time it's going to be very challenging that we will go to our neighborhood.

Some of the residents here Harris telling us that their landlords aren't letting them break their leases or offering them rebates but of course that's just a case by case basis -- Now you mentioned business interruption insurance I -- there's some people tonight writing that down and equipment thank you.

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Manhattan businesses struggle to recover after Sandy

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