Rebuild it, but rebuild it better. (Getty)

"I do not believe, anymore, that this is once in a lifetime, once in a hundred years, once in a generation or just a fluke," Governor Andrew Cuomo declared a few days after Sandy blew through town, and it appears many New Yorkers agree with him. A new Quinnipiac poll out today finds that two out of three state residents believe their community will be hit by a serious storm sometime in the next decade.

What is remarkable, then, is that the same poll also found that almost nine out of 10 New Yorkers believe we should rebuild in the areas hit by the superstorm. But most New Yorkers also want to build back with greater resiliency. The poll found that 65 percent of those responding want improved building codes to be implemented before anything is rebuilt in the flood zones, while 23 percent believe communities should be built as they were. Only 8 percent want to prohibit redevelopment.

“In the cleanup after Sandy, most New York State voters say there should be tougher building standards,” Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said in a release. "Voters on Long Island and in New York City, the areas hardest hit, support stricter codes." But they do not blame climate change for the storm, he added. The poll found that 45 percent thought global warming had made the storm worse, while 50 percent did not.

When it comes to rebuilding, slightly more New York City residents wanted to abandon the coasts, with 9 percent in favor of not rebuilding, compared with 7 percent in each of the other sample areas, the suburbs, upstate and Long Island. Meanwhile, only 19 percent of five borough residents said we should rebuild as-is, compared with 21 percent in the suburbs and Long Island and 29 percent upstate. City residents want stronger codes by a margin of 68 percent.

As for the likelihood of another superstorm in the coming decade, 34 percent of poll respondents thought this was possible, while 33 percent said it was somewhat likely. There were 19 percent who thought another serious storm was not that likely, and 11 percent thought it would be a rare occurrence.

This probably helps explain why the last Q poll found that so many New Yorkers supported big expenditures on storm-proofing the city's infrastructure.

London has had barriers on the Thames since 1984. (Getty)

It's starting to seem like Mayor Bloomberg is the only one who doesn't think storm barriers are a worthwhile investment. Not only do Governor Cuomo, MTA chief Joe Lhota and both Jerry Nadler and Chuck Schumer think it's a good idea, but so do 80 percent of New York City voters, according to a new Quinnipiac poll out today.

They were asked, specifically, if it was worth spending billions—no exact amount, or source of funds beyond the federal and state governments was given—on new waterfront infrastructure. Only 14 percent thought it was not worth the cost. Support was even higher when the pollsters asked if the cost was justified it if the storm protections could "reduce the cost of disruption and restoration." Then, 88 percent supported the new infrastructure, compared to 6 percent who did not support.

But the whole "worth it" debate is at the heart of the issue. Mayor Bloomberg has said time and again he does not believe sufficient protections could be built, at least at a cost making such efforts worth it. One person who believes this will happen anyway, because of American political vagaries, good and ill, is Times architecture critic Michael Kimmelman.

Hurricane Sandy was a toll paid for procrastination. The good news? We don’t need to send a bunch of Nobel laureates into the desert now, hoping they come up with some new gizmo to save the planet. Solutions are at hand. Money shouldn’t be a problem either, considering the hundreds of billions of dollars, and more lives, another Sandy or two will cost.

So the problem is not technological or, from a long-term cost-benefit perspective, financial.

Rather it is the existential challenge to the messy democracy we’ve devised. The hardest part of what lies ahead won’t be deciding whether to construct Eiffel Tower-size sea walls across the Verrazano Narrows and Hell Gate, or overhauling the city’s sewage and storm water system, which spews toxic waste into rivers whenever a couple of inches of rain fall because the sea levels have already risen so much. These are monumental tasks.

But more difficult still will be staring down the pain, dislocation and inequity that promise to upend lives, undo communities and shake assumptions about city life and society. More than requiring the untangling of colossal red tape, saving New York and the whole region for the centuries ahead will become a test of civic unity.

So while Mr. Kimmelman agrees with the majority that big infrastructure must be built, he also agrees with the mayor, that so, too, must smart construction—or no construction. "At this point there’s no logic, politics and sentiment aside, to FEMA simply rebuilding single-family homes on barrier islands like the Rockaways, where they shouldn’t have been built in the first place, and like bowling pins will tumble again after the next hurricane strikes."

Still, tell that to all the people whose lives have been upended by the storm. It will be like swallowing a bitter pill after be socked in the stomach.

These are a few of our favorite things! (Chris Baskind)

Our colleagues at the Politicker dig into a new Quinnipiac poll, which has some interesting results for us over on the real estate desk, namely Bike Lames and the Walmart-osaurus.

In other poll news, bike lanes are growing more popular with New Yorkers as 59 percent say that are good because they are greener and healthier, an uptick of 3 percent from a previous poll in May.

The poll also asked about Walmart, who are trying to locate a store in New York City over the objection of some in the City Council. Over 60 percent of New Yorkers say they should be allowed to do so.

There's a lot more analysis on whether New York should pressure its public employees to fork over more in wages and benefits—their neighbors think no. Read more at the Politicker.

Update: Transportation Alternatives sent out a quick release crowing about the new bike lane numbers.

"New Yorkers are savvy people. Despite months of misinformation and fake controversy, a growing majority of New Yorkers support these street safety improvements. That's because anyone can see that bike lanes are good for all New Yorkers. Separate spaces for pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers keep everyone out of each other's way and out of harm's way."

Here's a thought. The bicycle backlash exploded over the winter, when the lanes were rightfully empty. Now, even with the mercury passing 100 some days, more people are actually out there using the lanes and liking them. And/or as time goes by, those who were critical of the lanes increasingly realize they will not kill them. Now if only they would get out of the way.

mchaban [at] observer.com | @MC_NYC

Michael Bloomberg leads Bill Thompson 53 to 35, according to a new Quinnipiac poll of 1,088 likely voters.

That’s virtually unchanged from their poll last month, which had Bloomberg leading 52 to 36.

This latest poll has Bloomberg leading 46 to 44 among Democrats, 61 to 24 among Independents, and 49 to 35 among Hispanics. Plus, he's leading in every borough.

Last week’s poll from Marist showed similar results, except it had Thompson leading in the Bronx.

A two-term incumbent just barely over 50 percent would normally have lots to worry about, if he were being challenged by someone who had convinced the public there was an electable alternative. Thompson, unable to crack 40 percent in public opinion polls, does not seem to have made that case effectively.

For public advocate, Mark Green leads the pack with 35 percent, just shy of the 40 percent he would need to avoid a run-off. Next is civil liberties attorney Norman Siegel, who has 14 percent. City Councilman Bill de Blasio, who has the backing of some major labor groups, has 10 percent, and City Councilman Eric Gioia has 5 percent.

But 34 percent of the voters surveyed said they're undecided about whom to support, setting up a truly up-in-the-air race to get into a runoff with Green.

For comptroller, City Councilman John Liu leads the field with 19 percent. In second place is Melinda Katz, the only woman in the race, with 13 percent. David Yassky, the only candidate from Brooklyn, has 10 percent, and David Weprin, the Council finance chairman, has 5 percent.

Fifty percent of the voters had not made up their mind.

Also, respondents strongly back mayoral control of schools, but also want the mayor to share responsibility for schools with the Council.

Paterson has come under fire on multiple fronts for proposing a budget that includes tax and fee increases on everything from soda to iTunes downloads. Forty-six percent of those surveyed said they disapprove of Paterson's approach to the budget, with opposition higher among upstaters and women.

But it looks like voters do "get it." Of those surveyed, 71 percent categorized New York's budget problems as "very serious." Which is a nice little Christmas present for Paterson.