By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609) 463-6716
Press of Atlantic City
Published: Friday, June 29, 2007
WILDWOOD — Sure, a moving sidewalk that carries beachgoers and their belongings the
1,800 or so feet between the Boardwalk and the water's edge here
would be perfect.
But visitors such as Diane Dunham are almost as
thrilled with the next best thing — a wooden walk that makes at
least half the trek across the city's expansive beach just a little
easier to manage.
On Thursday, public works crews installed the new
wooden walks at several streets. Most of the wooden sections ordered
by the city should be in place in time for the Fourth of July
holiday.
“You're not having to walk in that hot sand,” said
Dunham, of Woodstown, as she and her friends and family prepared to
make the trip toward the Atlantic Ocean from the Boardwalk at
Leaming Avenue.
They came to town for the day, but with what
appeared to be provisions for a much longer stay. There were beach
chairs, a cooler, buckets and shovels, beach towels and more. The
little ones in her group helped carry what they could, and the new
wooden walk eased their burden, too.
The wooden walkways,
made of pressure-treated pine, were built through a Department of
Corrections program and funded by an $80,000 grant from Cape May
County, said city development director Lou Ferrara.
Nine hundred of the 4-by-10-foot-long sections
will be planted up and down the beach as they come in. By Thursday
afternoon, Roberts, Rio Grande, Leaming and Hildreth avenues had the
walkways in place.
Mayor Ernie Troiano Jr. said the city hopes to
improve access for everyone, particularly those in wheelchairs, who
want to enjoy the beach. Beach ends with ramps were among the first
to receive the new walkways.
In addition to the 900-foot-long walks, the city
has added portable toilets at the end of the walks, including
handicapped-accessible facilities, said acting Public Works Director
Kevin Verity.
Along the way, extra boards have been added at
certain points to allow room for beach- goers to pass each other.
Benches will likely be added later, Troiano said.
Ferrara said the boards will likely stay in place
until the season comes to a close, and then they will be stored
until next summer.
And in the meantime, the mayor warned those with
permits to drive on the beach not to drive across the walkways,
which could crack or break under the weight of a car or truck.
“Anybody caught driving over them will be shot at
sundown,” the mayor joked.
Construction Underway for Luxury
Jersey Shore Condo Complex
June 08, 2007
Commercial Property News USA
By Amanda Marsh, Associate Editor
The Grand at Diamond Beach condominium complex in Diamond Beach,
N.J., is well on its way. The property, which is just south of
Wildwood in Cape May County, is a 12-story building that will
contain 125 upscale condo units along with associate amenities and
recreation areas upon its completion, expected in fall 2008. The
site is the former location of the Grand Hotel, which was razed to
make room for the development.
The Dick Corp. was recently awarded a $100 million contract to
provide construction services for the project along with Baumgardner
Construction. Paul Chiolo, the sales director for the project and
the owner of Oceanside Realty, which is marketing the condo units,
told CPN the total build-out would be in the "couple hundred million
dollar" range.
The Grand at Diamond Beach is an unprecedented project for the Cape
May area. "This is the only condo/lifestyle project of its type on
the Jersey Shore," Chiodo said. The project is in response to the
growing affluence of the area, and is unique because of its private
beach. The parcel next door, which is currently home to the Pier
6600 Motor Inn, will house the second phase of The Grand at Diamond
Beach a few years down the line, he added. The second phase is
currently in its design stage by the project's developer,
Achristavest L.L.C., which specifically focuses on waterfront
residential developments.
Other upscale residential projects Achristavest currently has under
development include: Shoals Resort in Bald Head Island, N.C.; Santa
Rosa in Ocean City, N.J.; and Deerfield Estate in Deer Valley, Park
City, Utah.
By PETE McALEER Statehouse Bureau, (609) 292-4935
Published: Saturday, June 2, 2007
TRENTON — When the state adopted a 7 percent lodging tax in
2002, it cushioned the blow with a promise seemingly backed by
the force of the law.
By statute, the Legislature dedicated a portion of the revenue
from the room tax to tourism and the arts. The win-win scenario
had the state collecting more tax dollars from the lodging
industry but investing more into tourism to attract new
visitors.
Five years later, half of that scenario has held true. Guess
which half.
“The only part of the bill that they enacted is the part about
taking the money,” said Diane Wieland, director of tourism for
Cape May County.
Tax revenue from hotel and motel visits continue to grow each
year, bringing $78 million to this year's budget and a projected
$87 million in the upcoming budget.
Meanwhile, tourism officials are back in Trenton, fighting for
money they thought had been guaranteed. The state cut tourism
funding from $12.76 million to $10.1 million last year and
proposes to spend the same $10.1 million this year.
“The state is reneging on a promise they made,” said Aldo
Tenaglia, owner of the Royal Canadian in Wildwood and Shalimar
Resort in Wildwood Crest.
For hotel and motel owners, the tax puts their businesses at a
disadvantage not only with other states but with their
neighbors, Tenaglia said. Hotels and motels must charge both a 7
percent sales tax and a 7 percent lodging tax. The state does
not collect either tax from condominiums or rental properties.
While hotel and motel owners feel shafted, state treasury
officials are pointing to the fine print. The statute recommends
the state spend $12.7 million on tourism, but it allows for a
minimum appropriation of $9 million, said Treasury Department
Spokesman Mark Perkiss.
“When you look at the statute, it doesn't say ‘you must,'”
Perkiss said. “We're in compliance.”
John Siciliano, executive director of the Wildwood Convention
Center, said the state takes the wrong attitude toward the
tourism industry.
“This is a $47 billion industry for the state, and we're going
to be sitting down arguing over $2 million,” Siciliano said.
“I'm shocked we're even having these conversations.”
Two weeks ago, Assemblyman Jeff Van Drew — who is chairman of
the Tourism and Gaming Committee — held a hearing about the
issue. He plans to rally tourism officials to attend an upcoming
budget hearing and fight for full funding.
“Our argument is we know the budget is tight, but the city of
Philadelphia spends more in tourism promotion than the entire
state of New Jersey,” Van Drew said. “I think as distasteful as
that tax is, the redeeming factor was there would be a statutory
requirement to fund tourism. You really are breaking the intent
and the spirit of the legislation.”
Van Drew said he will introduce legislation that requires the
state to fund tourism fully or eliminate the occupancy tax. He
said the bill will not move in time for this budget, which must
be adopted by July 1.
A similar “poison pill” amendment requires the state to fund
beach replenishment fully if it wants to collect the real estate
transfer tax. Those types of arrangements typically are set
before a tax is adopted and not after.
State Sen. Nicholas Asselta, R-Cape May, Cumberland, Atlantic,
said the Legislature pulled a similar trick when it promised to
direct money from an income tax increase toward property tax
rebates, then later cut the rebates while keeping the tax.
“Where does it end?” Asselta asked. “We should be fighting for
more money, not what's owed to us. This is the livelihood of the
state, tourism, and you're shorting them $2 million in marketing
money. Is this maybe one of the underlying reasons for why we
still have a deficit? It's penny-wise and pound-foolish.”
For Weiland, the director for Cape May County's tourism
department, the biggest concern is that the numbers show a trend
toward daytrippers. She said Cape May County's accommodations
industry has remained flat for three years at $2.2 billion
annually, while revenue for attractions has risen 60 percent.
“If we reduce tourism funding by $2 million, are we doing
everything we need to do?” Weiland asked. “We need to use every
penny of that to expand our market and open new markets to
create overnight stays.”
Statewide, tourism has fallen from the state's second largest
industry to its third, behind pharmaceuticals and technology.
Marilou Halvorsen, president of the New Jersey Travel Industry
Association, said the state's own study shows every dollar spent
on tourism promotion brings back $29 to the economy.
“I don't know any investment on Wall Street that yields that
kind of return,” Halvorsen said.
Jersey shore amusement hotspot ditches paper
tickets
December 12, 2006, 10:00 AM EST
Press of Atlantic City
WILDWOOD, N.J. (AP) _ You aren't going to need a
ticket to ride at one New Jersey shore institution starting next
summer.
Instead, you'll need a plastic card.
Morey's Piers, a string of five seaside
amusement parks, is doing away with its traditional paper
tickets _ long the stuff of scrapbooks and displays at the
Wildwood Historical Society Museum.
For rides from the mini tea cups to the AtmosFEAR, admission
will be paid starting in 2007 with plastic cards that look a lot
like credit cards. That means no more tearing off two or three
tickets per ride.
Will Morey, president of the piers, told the Press of Atlantic
City for Tuesday's editions that he thinks customers will be
comfortable with the switch _ even if nostalgia seekers aren't.
The cards can be reloaded from home computers and registered so
that it will be possible to find the owners of lost ones _ and
to trace the track of kids lost while playing at the pier.
"We're a unique breed," Morey said, "and we don't want to be
outdated."
Published: Thursday, October 12,
2006 Press of Atlantic City
WILDWOOD CREST —
The borough has awarded a $1.8 million contract to Albrecht & Heun
to stabilize the shoreline around Sunset Lake.
Borough Clerk Kevin Yecco said the project
involves the addition of soft-concrete armoring to square off and
clean up the area along the shoreline of the popular lake.
Yecco said the project would allow the borough to
reclaim another 10 to 20 feet of land by removing the rocks and old
concrete dumped in the lake decades ago near Rambler Road south,
making the area more attractive at low tide.
A pre-construction meeting will take place in the
next couple of days to determine a project timeline.
Funding for the shoreline improvements comes from
$1.4 million in state grants with the borough providing the
remainder.
During Wednesday's regular
meeting, Borough Commission also agreed to submit an application to
the state Department of Transportation to use state money set aside
to extend its bike path to instead improve the bike path that
already exists along the beachfront.
The borough has $250,000 set aside to extend the
path, but found it would make more sense to upgrade the existing
path.
During a closed session, the commissioners also
discussed the town's involvement in the Joint Construction Office of
the Wildwoods.
The borough previously submitted a letter to the
island-wide agency informing it of the borough's plans to leave the
joint construction office by Dec. 31 if its requests were not met.
Those requests include hiring a full-time administrator and having
the state conduct any building inspections of high-rises proposed
for the city of Wildwood.
Yecco said the borough is still reviewing its
options while it waits for a formal response from the joint
construction office.
Some of the options under consideration are hiring
a third-party to conduct the borough's building inspections, having
the state Department of Community Affairs perform inspections or
having the work done in-house.
Borough Solicitor Doreen Corino also is working
with Tax Assessor Jason Hesley to come up with a plan of action
regarding Cape May County's order that the borough perform a
revaluation.
The borough has been told to conduct the
revaluation of the town's properties next year to allow those
figures to be placed on the county's tax rolls in 2008.
Also Wednesday, the commission considered whether
its logo, featuring the Brigantine Nancy, should be replaced with
something new. The matter is still in the discussion phase.
NORTH WILDWOOD —
Southern New Jersey's shore and summer vacations were synonymous for
the May family.
“As a kid, my parents used to go down to the
Wildwoods,” Richard May said. “To us, North Wildwood was the shore.”
So as an adult, it seemed fitting that May, 64,
would buy a vacation home here. He hoped his three children and five
grandchildren could create equally lasting memories.
But a cloud overshadowed what should have been a
sun-filled summer at the shore for May and many of his fellow
condominium owners. They found out their properties may not have
been built up to code.
The Joint Construction Office of the Wildwoods,
which oversees construction projects for Wildwood, Wildwood Crest,
North Wildwood and West Wildwood, notified the owners of nearly 500
units primarily in Wildwood and North Wildwood of the possible
violations this year. Most received word in the first few months of
2006, but some, including May, only learned of the problem in June.
Owners were told their buildings
may have been improperly inspected by the construction office or not
built to code, and that an array of violations, such as a lack of
firewalls, had to be repaired.
The construction office, according to its
attorney, Glenn P. Callahan, is also reviewing other buildings, as
many as 2,000, constructed between 2000 and 2005 to determine if the
problem is more widespread. The review will then extend to other
multifamily buildings erected prior to 2000, Callahan said.
The reported deficiencies in May's building, a
four-unit property on Ocean Avenue, include the need for a second
staircase and questions about the very joints holding it together.
Suddenly, May, of Yardley, Pa., found his perfect
vacation home was not so.
May recalled looking at 28 properties in 2003
before he found number 29.
“Something with an ocean view, not the Boardwalk,
and I liked the layout,” May said.
North Wildwood's appeal, he said, included what he
called the gentrification of the island, linked to a changing real
estate market combined with prices still relatively reasonable
compared to neighboring shore towns Avalon and Stone Harbor.
He purchased his unit for under $300,000.
According to the city's recent revaluation, the 1,600-square-foot
unit is now valued at $570,000.
With the code question looming, however, those
figures lose some of their meaning.
“For starters, if I wanted to, I can't sell it. I
can't rent it if I wanted to right now,” May said. “I have no idea
what my property is actually worth.”
And he has only an estimated idea of what it will
cost to fix or whether it really needs to be fixed at all.
In August, May was one of many owners meeting with
construction office officials to learn exactly what was wrong.
May said they couldn't find the building plans
during that meeting and instead suggested that because it was
designed by architect Kevin Young, the same architect who worked on
several properties involved, that it likely had the same code
violations.
“They couldn't prove it to me,” May said.
Superior Court Judge Steven Perskie, who is
overseeing the litigation surrounding the units, has said he wants
the problems fixed, promising no one will be hurt in one of the
properties while he's involved.
Perskie became involved when the construction
office filed suit against dozens of builders, developers, architects
and condominium associations connected with the affected properties.
He has said he will revoke the certificates of
occupancy later this year for properties where no progress has been
made.
Meanwhile, the joint construction office has been
talking with the owners, builders, developers and architects to
resolve the problems and many owners have already signed abatement
agreements, which are documents spelling out the violations and how
they will be resolved.
If May and others in his building sign such an
agreement, they will have to pay to fix any code violations. He says
that could include installing fire alarms and sprinkler systems and
estimates costs between $50,000 and $60,000.
May, who makes a living selling services to mutual
funds, said he can afford it, but the additional expense, along with
attorney's fees, will likely pose a hardship for others.
And May wonders just how urgently the repairs are
needed.
“To date, nothing's burned down that I know of,”
May said.
Instead, May said the focus should be on forcing
those responsible to take the blame and suffer the consequences.
Perskie has said there is ample blame to go
around, but assigning it will likely come later when he determines
who ultimately will pay for the repairs.
The state Department of Community Affairs has
already cited several construction officials for their role in the
inspection process. As of June, letters of warning had been sent by
Office of Regulatory Affairs supervisor Louis J. Mraw to Lawrence J.
Booy, John E. Conti and Mario A. Zaccaria. A letter of reprimand
also was sent to Wayne M. Gibson. An additional letter was sent to
inspector Albert S. Beers advising him that a review committee will
look at findings in his case to determine if his licenses should be
revoked.
“The judge is trying to look like a hero. What he
needs to do is knock heads with the developers and the JCOW office,”
May said.
In the meantime, May says, he is managing to enjoy
his seashore home. A typical summer day has included visits with his
children and grandchildren, making sandcastles, reading a book under
the sun and cooking together at home.
“There are trips to the Boardwalk with the
grandkids. We've still been able to do that,” May said.
And this weekend, the joint construction office
was the least of his concerns as he planned to enjoy a late
September visit during the Irish Fall Festival.
May said the whole experience has soured him just
a little on the Wildwoods, but he still wants to stay and enjoy his
time here, possibly even purchasing a more luxurious vacation home
next time around.
“I think North Wildwood is a pretty place. They've
done some good things here,” May said.
But his good feelings may not be enough.
“This has the potential to destroy the community,”
May said.
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609) 463-6716
Press of Atlantic City
Published: Wednesday,
September 20, 2006
WILDWOOD — City Commission
approved its 2006 budget this week after receiving
approval from the state's Division of Local Government
Services.
The state had to give its blessing to an additional
agreement between the city and developer K. Hovnanian in
which the company agreed to pay the city $1.5 million by
Dec. 15.
According to the budget, the city anticipated that
money, a partial payment for the developer's purchase of
a former city landfill, as revenue that would help
support the $24.8 million spending plan.
Mayor Ernie Troiano Jr. said the state gave the nod
to the agreement late Friday, and the commission in turn
adopted the budget early Monday.
City Clerk Christopher Wood then drove the document
to Trenton and placed it in the state's hands.
The amendment to the original
memorandum of understanding between the city and K.
Hovnanian notes that the developer has spent more than
$1.5 million conducting its on-site analysis of the
city's former backbay landfill in an effort to turn that
property into an upscale residential development.
The company had initially planned to build more than
200 homes on the site, but that number may change.
According to the agreement, however, “such analysis
has revealed that the costs for developing the site are
substantially higher than initially contemplated.”
Under the agreement, K. Hovnanian agrees to pay the
$1.5 million by December, and both sides agree to meet
by Oct. 20 to finalize the redevelopment agreement for
the back-bay area.
In addition, the agreement states that if the
developer does not make the payment, the city can
withdraw from the agreement and the $3 million already
paid to the city by K.Hovnanian does not have to be
returned.
The city would also be given all documentation and
information already collected by K. Hovnanian regarding
the landfill site, including surveys, professional
reports and any environmental studies. The city also
reserves the right to take the project to another
developer.
With the 2006 budget finally adopted, Troiano looked
ahead to the 2007 budget process.
He said the city has some surplus funds and payments
due next year that will help support the 2007 spending
plan, but he remains cautious.
“Until we get these bigger buildings in place, it's
going to be difficult each year,” Troiano said,
referring to a number of high-rise hotels planned in the
city.
Troiano estimated those properties would add billions
to the city's ratable base and reduce the tax burden on
the town's other property owners.
The city's ratable base rose from $546,094,923 in
2004 to $1.727 billion in 2005. This year, the ratable
base is up to $1.765 billion.
Troiano said he expects to hear some news from the
state Department of Environmental Protection within 45
to 60 days on the status of those buildings. The state
had previously denied the first of those proposed
high-rises a permit to build.
Lower resident protests Villas
name on wildlife refuge
By RICHARD DEGENER Staff Writer, (609) 463-6711
Published: Thursday, September
7, 2006
Press of Atlantic
City
LOWER TOWNSHIP:
Town Bank resident Steve Sheftz calls his community the
“birthplace of South Jersey.” He wonders how the upstart
in the neighborhood, the 80-year-old Villas section, won
the naming rights for the new state wildlife preserve
off Bayshore Road.
Sheftz said his community has been around for 371 years.
Town Bank was home to whalers as far back as 1635, he
said, and famous Quaker and Pennsylvania founder William
Penn is credited with giving Town Bank its name. Sheftz
also points out that Town Bank is 141 years older than
the United States of America, 163 years older than Lower
Township, and 234 years older than Cape May.
Sheftz compiled his arguments in a letter to Lee
Widjeskog of the state Division of Fish and Wildlife,
the agency that is turning the former Ponderlodge Golf
Club into the wildlife preserve that Widjeskog announced
recently would be named the Villas Wildlife Management
Area. Sheftz claims the new name does not have support
from Township Council or the people of Town Bank.
“I am sure that many of the people, especially
descendents, would be greatly offended by the name you
mentioned,” Sheftz wrote to Widjeskog.
He described the Villas as an area with less than 80
years of history with “primarily a short real estate
business and supportive services background.”
Councilman Mike Beck, who represents
the Villas' ward and offered the idea to use the name
for the new preserve, claims Sheftz is striking back at
him because Beck was the first to support the bird
sanctuary instead of the public golf course Sheftz
wanted. Beck said that once council agreed to the bird
sanctuary, it took away the main campaign issue Sheftz
had in the November election. Sheftz, a Republican, is
running in the 2nd Ward race against incumbent Democrat
Wayne Mazurek, and one of his platforms was to push for
a golf course.
Part of the debate centers on which community can
geographically claim the 253-acre tract. Neither the
Villas nor Town Bank is an incorporated town — they are
both communities with no clear boundaries.
Sheftz claims the Villas ends at Wildwood Avenue.
Beck counters that the U.S. Census places the
Ponderlodge property in the Villas and it has a Villas
post office address. Beck offered a reference to the
movie Miracle on 34th Street, in which a post office
address proved there was a Santa Claus, to bolster his
argument.
“Miracle on 34th Street was decided on a post office
address. He (Santa Claus) got his mail at the North Pole
and therefore he did exist. Their mail goes to the
Villas. Game, set and match,” Beck said.
The three other members on council are split over the
naming issue. Beck said Councilman Stig Blomkvest agrees
with him.
Mazurek, who originally wondered if it should be
named after the Fishing Creek section or the historic
Cox Hall Creek on the property, leans towards the
Villas. Due to coastal erosion, Mazurek noted that the
original Town Bank whaling village is out in the
Delaware Bay.
“It's not Town Bank. In reality, the real Town Bank
is three miles offshore in the bay,” Mazurek said.
The Villas is also much easier to find on a map,
Mazurek said, which may be important to visitors coming
from all over to tour the new preserve.
Beck also has argued the Villas needs the good
recognition it would get from a world-class bird
sanctuary, and Mazurek agrees.
“Mike feels it gives a boost to an area that's not
had a great reputation. His thoughts are well taken on
that,” Mazurek said.
Lower Township Mayor Walt Craig has asked Cape May
County Engineer Dale Foster to do some research on where
Villas ends and Town Bank begins.
“I can't see it being named for a place it's not in.
Personally, I think it should just be the Lower Township
Wildlife Management Area,” Craig said.
The mayor said he is more concerned about the
property being turned into a quality refuge and public
recreation facility. He also noted the name issue must
be decided because the site opens to the public
Saturday.
“The first 100 get a free T-shirt, and I don't know
what it's going to say,” Craig said.
Tax rate up slightly as property values climb
in Wildwood
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609) 463-6716
Published: Thursday, September 7,
2006 Press of Atlantic Citydiv>
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Mayor Ernie Troiano Jr. said he understood
Salvatico's concern, but he added the city could not control
property values.
Salvatico warned that high taxes will mean some
people will not be able to afford to pay this year's tax bill, which
will result in higher tax bills for everyone in the future to make
up the difference.
“We're not immune from the tax increase
ourselves,” Troiano said of himself and his fellow commissioners.
The city's 2006 spending plan totals $24.8
million, up slightly over the 2005 budget of $24.7 million.
The budget is supported by $14.3 million in local
property taxes, $1.9 million in surplus funds, and $8.5 million in
revenues. It also comes with a tax increase of 1.5 cents.
That means the local purpose tax rate, which
supports the city's operations, will be 81.2 cents compared to 79.7
cents in 2005.
Initially, the tax increase was expected to be
slightly higher, but Troiano has said the city worked hard to pare
down the figure.
The overall tax rate, including county and school
taxes, will equal $1.51 per $100 of assessed property valuation. The
total tax rate in 2005 for the city was $1.42.
After the meeting, Commissioner Kathy Breuss said
adoption of the budget was delayed until Monday, Sept. 11, because
the city is awaiting $1.5 million in land-sale revenues from
developer K.Hovnanian.
That money is part of the purchase price of the
former back bay landfill which K.Hovnanian is expected to convert
into a residential development of about 200 homes.
Once the city has the money in place, the budget
can be adopted, Breuss said.
The city will reconvene the
special meeting on the budget at 4 p.m. Sept. 11
Preservation effort offers tour of Wildwoods
architecture
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609) 463-6716
Published: Friday, September 1,
2006
WILDWOOD —
Preservationists, historians and everyday fans of the Wildwoods have
been invited to take part in a sort of urban safari this fall.
But instead of plains teeming with wildlife, this safari will
highlight bright neon signs, jutting roof lines and plastic palm
trees.
The endangered species on this tour? The island's collection of
1950s and 1960s-era motels.
The motels were named to Preservation New Jersey's 2005 list of the
state's 10 Most Endangered Historic Sites. Then, the National Trust
for Historic Preservation added the motels to its 2006 list of
America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places.
“We thought it was an appropriate time to take people on the tour
and highlight what's happening in the Wildwoods,” said Swathy
Keshavamurthy of Preservation New Jersey.
The group has joined forces with the Preservation
Alliance for Greater Philadelphia to offer an up-close tour of the
motels Oct. 21 to focus attention on both the motels that have been
demolished in favor of new construction and the motels that remain.
Ron Emrich, executive director of Preservation New
Jersey, said a tour bus will collect visitors in New Brunswick and
PATCO's Woodcrest station before heading to Five Mile Beach.
“We wanted our membership to learn more about
them. We'll take reservations (for the tour) until we can't take
anymore,” he said.
Emrich said about 100 of the motels, with exotic
of futuristic names like the Hi Lili and the Satellite, have been
torn down in the past several years.
“Of course it worries us. The Wildwoods have the
most significant collection of mid-20th century architecture in the
country, if not the world,” Emrich said.
Tour goers will see the new construction,
primarily condominiums, that have replaced them, but they will also
see the ones that have been restored, modernized and maintained.
Emrich said the future of those that remain is
tied to economic incentives and education, demonstrating how they
can be renovated to meet modern visitor needs while maintaining
their doo-wop flavor.
“There's trouble putting all your eggs in one
basket, in this case condos,” Emrich said. “You've got to retain and
maintain a variety of products.”
Keshavamurthy said the organization has offered
similar tours of other historic places such as sections of Newark
and Jersey City, and this year it decided to restart the tour
program in Wildwood.
That's a move Dan MacElrevey, head of the Doo Wop
Preservation League, welcomes.
“It's amazing to me how many e-mails we get about
the Wildwoods and the 1950s and 1960s. A lot of people remember it
fondly. Sometimes, we're too close to see that,” MacElrevey said.
CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE — The
blame can be assigned later.
For now, Superior Court Judge Steven Perskie said he is more
concerned with making sure that nearly 500 condominium units in the
Wildwoods are made to comply with fire codes.
“Job one is fixing the buildings that need fixing and doing so
immediately,” Perskie said Thursday during the latest hearing on the
noncompliant properties.
Perskie said it made no sense to him that the state Department of
Community Affairs did not consider the building-code violations an
imminent threat to public safety, given that most of the violations
are related to fire safety, fire separation and fire suppression
issues.
Of the 75 buildings with violations, 46 had not reached an agreement
on how to resolve those code issues as of Thursday's 9 a.m. hearing.
Perskie warned that if the remaining condominium
associations fail to reach some agreement for repairs by Sept. 7, he
would consider suspending their certificates of occupancy and order
the buildings be vacated.
“No one is going to get hurt in any one of those
buildings on my watch,” Perskie said.
The issue of who will ultimately pay for the
repairs is likely to be decided in future legal proceedings, but
Perskie said the immediate responsibility lies with the homeowners.
Once repairs are made, they are free to pursue
claims against those they blame for the code violations.
On Feb. 10, unit owners were sent notice that
their properties had been identified by the state as being built or
inspected under the wrong building codes related to fire walls,
means of egress and other fire-related safety issues.
Since then, the Joint Construction Office of the
Wildwoods, or JCOW, has been meeting with developers, builders,
architects and condominium associations to find ways to solve the
problem.
On Thursday, Perskie received an update on the
problem from JCOW attorney Glenn Callahan and heard from attorneys
representing some of the dozens of owners, developers and other
professionals involved.
Callahan told the judge the list of troubled
properties started with 79 buildings and was later reduced to 75
that actually belonged on the list.
Of those, 29 have been abated or have formal
agreements on how they will be abated, meaning repairs have been or
will be made, Callahan said.
They have been given until Dec. 15 to make the
necessary repairs.
That leaves 46 properties with no agreement in
place. Callahan said talks are ongoing for the majority of those and
he expects at least 14 will come to an agreement with JCOW shortly.
The delay on those, Callahan said, has to do with
money.
“The issue in the balance is who's going to pay
for it,” Callahan told the judge.
Attorney Henry Lewandowski, representing multiple
properties, said the owners are faced with certain economic
realities that cannot be avoided.
Lewandowski said the owners in North Wildwood, for
instance, are unable to rent their properties because the city will
not permit them to, and real estate agents won't list them for sale.
That means many of them are coming to the
realization they cannot afford to hold onto their condominiums, he
said.
“They're going to have to walk away from it,”
Lewandowski said.
Perskie said he was aware of the financial bind
placed on owners, but public safety was his focus.
“We're going to fix the buildings quickly, or
we're going to vacate the buildings,” Perskie said.
Sip and slide
Alcohol sales prove a hit at Wildwood water park
By BRIAN IANIERI Staff Writer, (609) 463-6713 Press of
Atlantic City
Published: Monday, August 7, 2006
NORTH WILDWOOD — Brian Ploe laid back in a 92-degree pool Sunday
afternoon, a frozen Mai Tai frosting the plastic cup in his hand.
Between Ploe, relaxing, and a 50 mph looping roller coaster was
about 40 feet and a roof made of tessellated Eucalyptus bark.
The covering was designed to look tropical while separating two very
different attractions on the 25th Avenue pier.
A volcano with a face spurted water from the middle of the
3-foot-deep pool, where men and women with wristbands gathered
around the edges to talk and sip beer and tropical drinks.
“It does make it a nice atmosphere for the adults to enjoy,” said
Ploe, of Upper Township, Cape May County.
The Caribbean, Jimmy Buffet-style Ocean Oasis Water Park and Beach
Club has been serving alcohol at designated areas in the park for
about three weeks.
Park officials hope the alcohol sales — tied in with services such
as private cabanas, hammocks, massages and concierge services — will
attract visitors and keep them there longer.
The market demanded more services and amenities, a Morey's Piers
representative told the city when it sought approval for alcohol
sales in the company's plan.
A separate but connected water park owned by the same company does
not allow alcohol.
By the nature of water parks, it's difficult to determine what
effects the changes have had so far, said George Rohman, operations
manager for Morey's Piers.
It's been busy, but the recent heat wave and overall hot weather —
like gold to places that market lots of water — could have played a
big factor too, he said.
“We think the concept is working,” he said.
The opening of a water park that also serves alcohol has drawn
criticism from people who see an inherent problem with mixing liquor
and water parks.
Any way you slice it, having alcohol, children and bodies of water
in the same area is not a good idea, opponents have said.
After hearing both strong opposition and strong support, on July 5
the City Council voted 5-2 to allow the sale of alcohol at the park.
Liquor sales started a few weeks later.
Park officials have said they have strict controls in the two areas
of the park where alcohol is currently being served.
In the heated pool, Rohman said, an extra lifeguard is used just to
keep tabs on the alcoholic drinks.
The area, which is full of bamboo and metal painted to resemble
bamboo, looks like Gilligan's Island but with more revealing bathing
suits.
Steve Siegfried of Upper Township was in the heated pool Sunday
afternoon, having spent much of the day at the park. It was his
first time there.
“I think it was a good idea,” Siegfried said. “It's very relaxing.”
Hot weather can spoil
beach snacks, tourists' appetites for boardwalk food
By THOMAS BARLAS
Press of Atlantic City Staff Writer, (609) 272-7201
Published: Sunday, August 6, 2006
David and Linda Graham walked down the Wildwood Boardwalk last week
under the blistering sun of a summer heat wave as they munched
slices of pepperoni pizza picked from a row of pies on display at an
open-air eatery.
The Deptford couple said they had no worries about the soaring
temperature spoiling their snack.
“I looked it over pretty good,” David Graham said. “If it had looked
like it's been out a little too long, forget it.”
Graham's once-over may not be exact science, but it's one easy thing
nutritionists say people can do to prevent getting sick from food
left out too long in the heat.
“Smell and color,” said Joyce Brody, clinical nutrition manager for
AtlantiCare Regional Medical Centers. “If you're smelling it and
it's not quite right, there's a reason for that.”
That's particularly important during the summer.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, food-borne
illnesses spike in the summer as food-borne bacteria grows fastest
at temperatures between 90 and 110 degrees. Bacteria also need
moisture to flourish, and summer weather — especially in New Jersey
— is often hot and humid.
Local and county health officials who deal with boardwalk eateries
say changing temperatures and humidity levels pose additional
challenges to operators of those establishments: It can be more
difficult to keep hot food hot and cold food cold, and to throw out
any foods — from sausage to garlic knots — on display before they go
bad. They also must deal with blowing sand and flies.
Some of those concerns could be reduced under a series of
regulations being considered by the state Department of Health and
Senior Services. The department could require screens to stop
insects from getting into the open-air eateries, time-dating foods
to make sure food doesn't sit out too long, and having food servers
and preparers wear gloves. The regulations could be in place next
year.
Those regulations also could further reduce what officials with
health departments in Cape May County and Atlantic City say is a
surprisingly low number of people who develop what is commonly
referred to as food poisoning from boardwalk fare.
“Remarkably, with (millions) of visitors, it's minuscule,” Atlantic
City Health Department Director Ron Cash said.
“We're not seeing anything above normal,” acting Cape May County
Health Coordinator Kevin Thomas said. “One or two, here or there.”
Thomas said high turnover rates during busy times of the day usually
ensure food doesn't sit out too long.
Joan Thaler, an inspector with the Cape May County Department of
Health, said one of the things she stresses to boardwalk open-air
food operators is to be aware of what's happening during off-peak
hours, when food moves more slowly and there's a greater chance it
might stay out too long.
“I encourage owners to think of the time the food has been left out,
and to be aware of that,” she said. “Just like you would do in your
own house.
“I think it's a matter of establishing rapport with the owner, and
once you've got good communications and explain what your concerns
are, and listen to their concerns, we can come to an understanding
about what can be done to solve the problem.”
Mike Rogers owns Sorrento's on the Wildwood Boardwalk, and he only
puts a few slices of pizza on display at a time to attract customers
because of the heat last week. He's also installed a refrigerator
near the open display area so he can control the quality of his
fare.
Rogers said the food preparation and handling courses he's taken
over the years made him aware of how important it is to keep food
fresh, and not just for the health of his patrons.
“In this business, I can't afford any problems,” he said.
Not everyone is satisfied.
Anna Lindell, of Upper Darby, Pa., was on the Wildwood Boardwalk on
Thursday with her two children, 8-year-old John and 11-year-old Amy.
Lindell wouldn't let her children eat any of the boardwalk fare that
was on display because of the heat. She said she just didn't think
it was safe.
“It't too much of a chance to take,” said said, adding she'd rather
buy her children water ice or ice cream as a snack and feed them
when she got back to her hotel.
Brody said customers should never feel badly about asking a
boardwalk eatery operator how long the food has been on display, or
even if they'll cook up something fresh.
Linda Graham said she and her husband have done that on occasion.
“They always say it's fresh,” she said. “What else do you expect
them to say?”
To e-mail Thomas Barlas at The Press:TBarlas@pressofac.com
Hereford Inlet Lighthouse
celebrates National Lighthouse Day
Press of Atlantic City staff reports
Published: Saturday, August 5, 2006
NORTH WILDWOOD — The Hereford Inlet Lighthouse is marking Aug. 7,
National Lighthouse Day, by offering free admission to children 12
and younger.
Steve Murray, the city's parks director, said National Lighthouse
Day was established in 1988 by President Ronald Reagan to recognize
lighthouses and their place in America's history.
Murray said New Jersey once had 49 lighthouses and that number is
down to about 22. Of those, about a dozen are open to the public at
some time during the year.
For more information, see
www.herefordlighthouse.org
The lighthouse is located at First and Central Avenues
A Long Way To Fun Plenty of room in Wildwood, but is a trek
to the water
By MICHAEL MILLER Staff Writer, (609) 463-6712
Press of Atlantic City
Published: Sunday, July 30, 2006
Updated: Sunday, July 30, 2006
WILDWOOD – Hosi Khan of Montreal stood, hands on hips, looking for
the rest of his beach party.
Khan lugged about 40 pounds of cooler, towels, beach chairs,
umbrella and snacks piled high on a hand cart from the parking lot
past the Wildwoods Convention Center.
But he stopped after 100 feet when he realized he wasn't sure where
he was going. The rest of his family was nowhere in sight. With
acres of deep sand surrounding him, he was looking for a beeline.
Finally, he spotted them waving about 100 yards north. With a grunt
he leaned forward and continued the slog.
“My sister-in-law picked the place,” he said, panting a little as
the cart's almost useless wheels dug parallel furrows in the hot
sand. “She had to pick the farthest spot.”
With him pulling and his brother-in-law Tuan Vu pushing, they made
it to the family's umbrella planted like an explorer's flag in their
patch of white beach.
Families such as Khan's make this pilgrimage to the sea every summer
day — sometimes many times throughout the day. The walk never gets
any shorter.
Wildwood has the Mount Everest of beaches. It's so vast the city has
dirtbike rallies here. It's so immense, it serves as a drop zone for
skydivers every summer and boasts two outdoor movie theaters with
room enough for thousands of beach towels, sandcastles and
umbrellas.
The only erosion here is the kind that nibbles at your will to keep
moving toward the mirage that is the water.
“We call it the desert,” said Drew Landes of Boyertown, Pa., still
dripping from a refreshing ocean swim.
“We like that it's a long stretch of sand. It never gets too
crowded,” he said.
Tour operators have taken full advantage. One company gives rides on
the beach in a cherry-red monster truck named The Jersey Devil.
Another enterprising businessman approached commissioners in 2000
about giving camel rides on the city's own Sahara.
Perhaps, as Landes suggests, some people are intimidated by the
prospect of crossing to the water's edge without help from a Sherpa.
More likely, the ample beach creates an optical illusion that there
are fewer people here than in neighboring towns. After all, there
are no beach tags here.
Celine Pilon of La Chute, Quebec, used a beach ball the size of a
coffee table to play kickball with three children. They only needed
a courtyard's worth of room but had enough empty acreage around them
to fill Citizens Bank Park.
“We went to Cape May first. Here, it's better for the children,”
Pilon said. “They have more room.”
Why so big?
Wildwood hasn't always had such a generous strand. Aerial
photographs from 1920 show a consistent strip of sandy coastline
resembling beaches in Ocean City today.
What happened? Two major things, beach expert Stewart Farrell said.
He is director of the Coastal Research Center at The Richard
Stockton College of New Jersey.
When the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built twin jetties along
either side of Cold Spring Inlet, the rocks began trapping sand that
might otherwise have drifted south to Cape May and the Delaware Bay,
he said.
Then in 1922, an entire channel called Turtle Gut Inlet became
choked with sand forming what is now Sunset Lake in Wildwood Crest.
The sand from the inlet began to collect, helping to form what is
now a Wildwoods phenomenon.
Another reason Wildwood has such amazing beaches is the sand itself.
Five Mile Island has the finest sand in New Jersey, Jeffrey Gebert
said.
He runs the coastal planning section of the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers in Philadelphia.
“The smallest grain size of sand along 125 miles of New Jersey coast
is in the zone occupied by the Wildwoods,” he said.
The difference is tangible. Wildwood's beaches actually feel
different beneath bare feet than Strathmere's or Atlantic City's.
The fine sand in the surf can be packed so tight it feels smooth and
hard like marble. The dry stuff can be silty.
“There is a progressive fining as you go south along the coast,”
Gebert said. “The grain size gets smaller and smaller until you get
to Wildwood.”
Contrarily, Delaware Bay beaches have larger grains and even bits of
polished quartz known locally as Cape May diamonds.
The grain of the sand has a correlation with the slope of the beach,
Gebert said. Wildwood has some of the flattest beaches, too, in New
Jersey.
“The larger the grain size, the steeper the slope,” he said.
So even though beachgoers have a long walk, at least it's flat.
Shifting sands
Farrell said Wildwood's colossal beach likely won't get much bigger.
“The rate of growth has come to a standstill on Wildwood's beaches.
They won't get even 100 feet wider naturally,” he said.
This is good news in some ways. The city has to work daily to keep
storm-water pipes free of sand. The bigger the beach, the more time
it takes for tractors to rake trash and debris every morning.
The creeping beach has dry docked the fishing pier on Heather Road
in Wildwood Crest. At low tide, anglers with the local fishing club
can cast 200 feet and still miss the water.
The Army Corps launched a study of the island's beaches this year.
North Wildwood's northern beaches have lost as much as 800 feet of
sand in the past decade.
Gebert said tourism dollars are a factor in his agency's analyses
for shore protection projects. There is no telling whether the
island's large beaches attract tourists for the elbow room or keep
them away because of the daunting hike, he said.
“As a beachgoer, the quarter mile of hot, dry beach to get to the
Boardwalk or where you park your car. To me, that would not be an
advantage,” he said. “Does it have an impact on the number of beach
users?”
Not judging by Saturday's crowds. The beaches were dotted with
umbrellas as far as the eye could see.
People seemed to enjoy the space, flying kites and building enormous
castles. Wildwood hosted an Ultimate Frisbee tournament Saturday.
The Poplar Avenue beach fit 60 fields with space for team tents.
Lifeguards in some towns rigidly enforce rules against tossing
footballs or Frisbees on crowded beaches. Not here, Caroline Pauze
of Montreal said.
”We used to go to Ocean City. But the lifeguards made you swim
between the flags,” she said, toting a beach chair and a backpack
full of drinks and summer reading.
“But I'm not here to play games today. I just want to relax.”
And here, more than at any beach in New Jersey, there is plenty of
room for that.
To e-mail Michael Miller at The Press:MMiller@pressofac.com
North Wildwood hopes to attract
developers to pier
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609)
463-6716 Press of Atlantic City
Published: Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Updated: Tuesday, July 11, 2006
NORTH WILDWOOD — The Boardwalk is abuzz with the sounds of screaming
roller-coaster riders and the sweet smell of funnel cakes, but the
scene is a little different at Seaport Pier.
The municipally-owned pier, between 21st and 23rd avenues, is quiet
except for occasional activity at the information center and police
substation up front.
But in less than a month, the city should have plenty of ideas about
how the dormant pier can be revived.
City Council approved a redevelopment plan for the pier, and
municipal planner Stuart Wiser said at least 85 requests for
qualifications and proposals have been sent to potential developers.
In addition, the city placed advertisements in major newspapers
including the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times asking for
potential developers. Those ads also led to several calls.
Next, the city hopes interested developers will come back, by the
Aug. 4 deadline, with plans to turn the pier into a quality retail,
dining and/or entertainment complex.
Mayor Bill Henfey said he is optimistic the wooden pier can become a
destination that will bring excitement to the Boardwalk.
Henfey said the city had already received calls from people wanting
to go up on the pier and take a look at the site, and on Monday a
developer spoke to him about options for the pier.
While the city asked for dining, retail and entertainment operations
of some sort, Henfey said the city welcomes something beyond the
ordinary.
“I'm hoping to get surprised with something we haven't even thought
about,” Henfey said. “A fresh idea.”
Henfey recalled his childhood days when the pier was made for
fishing. At one time, a restaurant was at the center of the pier and
fisherman could travel farther up to cast their lines.
Resident and local historian Robert J. Scully recalled building
stores across from the fishing pier in the 1970s and said the pier
can trace its roots to the 1920s.
Today, water no longer runs under the pier, but the city is still
doing a little fishing.
“We tried to cast a wide net,” Wiser said, noting that local,
national and international developers have been invited to redevelop
the pier.
N. Wildwood waterpark gets approval to sell
liquor
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609) 463-6716 Press of
Atlantic City
Published: Thursday, July 6, 2006
Updated: Thursday, July 6, 2006
NORTH WILDWOOD — With a 5 to 2 City Council vote Wednesday night,
Morey's Piers won the last approval it needed to begin serving
alcoholic drinks at its 25th Avenue waterpark.
Clark Doran, director of planning and development for Morey's, said
the company hoped to be serving alcoholic drinks by this weekend at
the Ocean Oasis Waterpark and Beach Club.
Wednesday's vote by City Council, which acts as the city's Alcoholic
Beverage Control board, followed a steady stream of speakers for and
against the prospect of allowing alcoholic beverages to be served at
the former Raging Waters park.
Doran told City Council the company was trying to keep up with a
market that demanded more services and amenities than found at the
traditional waterpark.
The company has already added hammocks, massages, organized
activities and other services to the waterpark, and alcoholic drink
service is part of the plan to upgrade the park.
“We try to evolve with the times,” Doran said.
The company plans to sell beer, wine and tropical drinks at two
locations within the lower level of the park and at an overhead
observation area.
Denise Beckson, head of the company's waterpark operations, outlined
the company's management plan and said strict controls would be in
place.
They include issuing wristbands to patrons 21 and over, selling
drinks in easily identifiable cups and not permitting unattended
drinks to be left behind.
Opponents of the plan, however, warned that allowing drink service
in a park frequented by children was a mistake.
Independent City Council candidate Kathy Martin said children ages
12 and over often travel to the waterpark without an adult, and the
service of alcoholic drinks would be a danger to them.
Children, she said, would be swimming and playing in the water
around adults who have been drinking.
Others questioned various aspects of the operation such as trash
collection, the hours alcoholic drinks would be served and the need
to separate children from areas where alcohol is served.
Drinks will be served from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. while the waterpark
normally closes at 7 p.m.
But supporters said the Morey family was trying to change with the
times as any business should do, and they suggested parents, not a
private waterpark, are ultimately responsible for their children.
“I do not see alcohol as a threat,” said resident Brian Lafferty.
Councilman Hank Rice and Walt Larcombe, who had previously voted
against the plan to sell alcoholic drinks at the waterpark, voted
against the liquor-license transfer.
“I just think (the sale of alcoholic drinks) has been taken very
lightly,” Rice said.
Rice said he worked as a bouncer for 12 years, and he has seen the
effect alcohol has on people. “You can't tell me alcohol doesn't
change a person,” he said.
Ocean Oasis opened in mid-June without alcoholic drink service.
With
appeal lost, casinos start planning for shutdown
By THOMAS BARLAS Staff Writer, (609) 272-7201
Published: Tuesday, July 4, 2006
Updated: Tuesday, July 4, 2006
ATLANTIC CITY — There will be no tear gas. Dogs won’t be turned
loose. Paddy wagons won’t cart away scores of gamblers reluctant to
let go of their favorite one-armed bandits.
The hope is that the unprecedented shutdown of
gambling at the city’s casinos — scheduled for 8 a.m. Wednesday —
will be calm, orderly and without any problems.
Casinos will turn in part to closing plans originally
developed to deal with things such as natural disasters and
terrorist attacks. They’ll follow specific steps to secure money and
keys to hard-count rooms and gaming-table drop boxes. Continued
surveillance will help make sure that nobody places a bet at a table
game or slips a coin into a slot machine — or even crosses the
gaming floor — after the closing deadline.
Perhaps the hardest job will be to get customers
off the gaming floor by 8 a.m.
That will be primarily the job of casino security staff, which have
reportedly undergone briefings on the issue since Gov. Jon S.
Corzine signed an executive order that shut down state government
after he and the Legislature couldn’t agree on a budget by the
constitutional deadline of midnight June 30. Corzine considers state
Division of Gaming Enforcement inspectors, who must be present in
the gaming halls for gambling to proceed, to be nonessential state
employees.
But at least 100 DGE inspectors and uniformed State
Police officers will be on hand to back up casino security Wednesday
morning. They’ll meet at about 6 a.m. at DGE headquarters on
Pennsylvania Avenue to get a last minute briefing from DGE Director
Tom Auriemma before heading to the casinos.
“It’s not like we’re going to arrest anybody,”
Auriemma said. “The goal is to ensure an orderly exit.”
A gambling shutdown is not what the casinos want, and casino
officials worked the state court system on Monday in hopes of
staying open.
Their efforts were unsuccessful, as both an appellate
court and the state Superior Court on Monday denied their request to
keep gaming operations running. State Supreme Court Associate
Justice James Zazzali said simply that the casinos had not
“established sufficient grounds for relief.”
Assistant Attorney General Patrick DeAlmeida, who
argued the case on behalf of the state, said that if the casinos won
judicial approval to stay open, other private parties would also
seek such relief.
“Casinos are not alone here in feeling economic
harm,” DeAlmeida argued.
Casino association lawyer John Kearney said the casinos were trying
to figure out their next step.
The decision means that while casino restaurants,
shops, bars and entertainment venues will remain open, gridlocked
state budget negotiations will do what not even past hurricanes or
blizzards could — bring gambling to a halt.
Casino officials weren’t immediately available for
comment regarding their gaming shutdown plans.
However, the casinos, DGE and state Casino Control
Commission have already discussed stop-gaming scenarios.
Auriemma said that getting people off the gaming
floors should be easier at 8 a.m. than at most other times of the
day because crowds are not at their largest.
Each casino can decide how to get people off the
floor, he said. Part of that might involve an announcement to
customers, he said.
Casinos may decide to cordon off sections of the
gaming floor as the overnight crowd begins to thin out, Auriemma
said. It’s possible that gaming at some casinos will end before 8
a.m., he said.
Once customers are off the gaming floor, the casinos
will have several hours of accounting that must be done, he said.
The casinos will also have to figure out a way of
keeping customers out of gaming areas, Auriemma said.
That could present a challenge for some casinos
that have bars and restaurants on their gaming floors, he said.
Casinos could close those bars and restaurants, he said, or create
some kind of secured path through the gaming floor so customers can
reach their destinations.
Auriemma said it’s clear that casino officials aren’t
happy with the situation.
However, he also said that discussions regarding the gaming shutdown
have been professional and cordial despite the court challenges to
the closure.
“We work with them every day,” Auriemma said.
“They work with us.”
“We didn’t expect them to sit idly by without challenging the issue.
That’s their right.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
To e-mail Thomas Barlas at The Press:
TBarlas@pressofac.com
By DEREK HARPER Staff Writer, (609) 272-7203 Press
of Atlantic City
Published: Tuesday, July 4, 2006
Updated: Tuesday, July 4, 2006
ATLANTIC CITY — Listen up, ladies and gentlemen: The New Jersey
shore is still open.
“We're going to have to start telling people that,” laughed Elaine
Shapiro Zamansky, spokeswoman for the Atlantic City Convention &
Visitors Authority.
The authority, which took calls from people wanting to know whether
the casinos were still open, was one of several places along the
shore that panicked vacationers called Monday.
They heard New Jersey's state government closed, potentially
shuttering the casinos along with state beaches and parks Wednesday,
and thought that meant all beaches, boardwalks and other attractions
from Cape May to Sandy Hook were locked down.
In reality, the casinos will remain open until at least 8 a.m.
Wednesday, and each of the towns bordering the Atlantic Ocean owns
its particular stretch of the shore.
While some state-run areas like Cape May Point State Park, Corsons
Inlet in Cape May County and Island Beach State Park in Ocean County
may be forced to close this week, those are the exceptions.
In North Wildwood, Lotus Inn co-owner and manager Lori Stambaugh
took calls throughout the day asking if the beaches were opened. She
was upset.
“I am not happy when information is put out there to alarm the
public and to influence the public and it is not in the correct
way.”
In Wildwood, Lee Brasch, admissions manager for Morey's Piers, took
a similar call from a woman coming to vacation who wanted to know:
Are the beaches closed?
“No,” Brasch said.
How about the water park?
“Nope. And even if the beaches were closed, we will not close the
water park,” she said.
Operators told people that the city's beaches and the privately
owned pier were still open, but she was afraid that tourists would
stay away.
“Tell everybody to come to Wildwood!” Brasch said. “It's great
here!”
In Ship Bottom, Information Clerk Cindy Galvin assured a person who
stopped by the Southern Ocean County Chamber of Commerce that the
Barnegat Lighthouse State Park was still open.
In Cape May, Cathy Wahl at the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Cape
May said she took a dozen similar calls throughout the morning,
mostly from the New York region.
Callers wanted to know if the beaches were still open. She assured
them yes and read a letter from Director Larry Muentz explaining
things were up and running.
“We sure don't want to have people call and cancel their vacation
out of fear,” Wahl said.
Fear over a potential closure stretched into Pennsylvania.
In Douglassville, Pa., 45 miles northwest of Philadelphia, people
called Adele Klein to find out whether Klein Transportation's casino
buses ran were still going to Atlantic City casinos.
“We just tell them to keep signing up and we will let you know if
they are closed,” said Klein, co owner and director of business
development.
She's concerned. The company runs between four and five 54-person
buses to Atlantic City every day. While the firm has 17 buses, the
resort is its only regularly scheduled destination and accounts for
half of its revenue.
On Monday, 11 buses were out. If there is a casino shutdown, they
stand to lose as much as $6,750 per day because beach or no beach,
that's not what they're coming for.
“They enjoy what Atlantic City is all about and if they pay the
fare, that's what they want to take part in,” she said, referring to
casino gambling.
Even so, Atlantic City Beach Patrol Chief Rod Aluise was surprised
when a reporter called him. The city's beaches were thick with the
holiday crowd.
He relayed his view from the squad's South Carolina Avenue
headquarters, a couple blocks from Resorts Casino Hotel. “I am
looking at a very beautiful holiday crowd,” Aluise said. “Everything
is normal.”
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609)
463-6716 Press of Atlantic City
Published: Saturday, July 1, 2006
Updated: Saturday, July 1, 2006
WILDWOOD — City Commission held an emergency meeting Friday to
authorize the tax collector to issue estimated tax bills for the
third quarter.
According to a resolution passed by the commissioners, the emergency
meeting was necessary because of the anticipated late adoption of
the city's 2006 budget and the lack of a certified tax rate for the
year.
“The mailing of estimated tax bills will enable the city of Wildwood
to meet its financial obligations, maintain the tax-collection rate,
provide uniformity for tax payments and save the unnecessary cost of
borrowing,” the resolution read.
The third quarter bills are due Aug. 1.
Mayor Ernie Troiano Jr. said Friday that tax bills should be mailed
to city property owners within the next two weeks.
The city, meanwhile, continues to fine-tune its 2006 budget, and
Troiano said he hopes to introduce it within two weeks.
Under the estimated tax-bill resolution, the city's anticipated
total tax rate is $1.52 per $100 of assessed property valuation
compared to $1.42 in 2005.
The rise in the overall tax rate includes a 1-cent increase in the
Cape May County tax, small increases in the the county library and
county open-space taxes, and a 5.7-cent increase in the local school
tax.
“Seven or eight cents of (the increase) is something I have no
control over. I have zero control over the county and the school,”
Troiano said.
According to the estimated tax bill, the local property-tax rate,
used to fund the city's operations, would increase from 79.7 cents
per $100 of assessed property valuation in 2005 to 82.3 cents in
2006.
The estimated local tax levy is $14.5 million, which would be an
increase over the 2005 tax levy of $13.7 million.
Troiano said the final city tax rate, however, was expected to
change because the city is still waiting to receive state funds
connected with the Wildwoods Convention Center operation.
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609)
463-6716 Press of Atlantic City
Published: Saturday, July 1, 2006
Updated: Saturday, July 1, 2006
WILDWOOD — Drivers caught behind the slow-moving yellow school bus
occasionally honked or sped past whenever they could, but those on
board hardly noticed.
Like children on a field trip, they peered through the windows
trying to catch a glimpse of the globe spinning above the Pan
American Hotel.
This, after all, was the Doo Wop 50s Trolley Tour, a trip designed
to slow things down and get visitors to see the details they had
likely passed before but never really noticed.
The dozen or so tourists on this tour oohed and aahed as tour guide,
and self-described Wildwood cheerleader, Joan Husband pointed out
the design elements that have come to be known as doo-wop.
Tour goers looked to the right at the roof line on the Bel Air Motel
designed to resemble the fins on the car of the same name, and to
the left as the bus passed the lava rock that covered the walls at
the Waikiki Oceanfront Inn.
Much was said of the plastic palm trees, a native Wildwood plant,
known to appear in time for spring, the neon signs that would light
the night sky, and the decorative railings such as the “va va va
voom” rounded balconies of the Imperial 500 Motel.
The tour bus cruised up and down the streets of Wildwood and
Wildwood Crest as Husband talked of the history behind the island's
collection of doo-wop motels
Husband, sporting her 50s-style “Pink Ladies” shirt, spoke of the
role cars played in the Wildwoods and the development of the
drive-up motel.
Other events of the times also played their part in the Wildwoods,
Husband explained.
Motels like the Satellite and the Ala Moana owed their names to the
space race and the development of commercial air travel to foreign
locales.
“You came here for your foreign travel,” Husband said as the bus
made its way past the famed Caribbean Motel.
And Miami Beach was only a drive away with motels like the Eden Roc.
“Come to Wildwood. You're in Miami Beach,” Husband said.
Along the way, Husband also pointed out what was no longer there.
As the tour bus passed new condominium construction, Husband
recalled motels that once lined the streets like the Hi-Lili and the
Three Coins.
“Don't get me crying,” Husband said as the bus passed what was no
more.
But while some of the island's doo-wop motels have ben torn down to
make way for the new, Husband literally found signs of hope.
The Acme sign, the Commerce Bank sign and more.
All are examples, she said, of doo-wop revival, a modern take on a
bygone day.
With songs like “Leader of the Pack” and “Under the Boardwalk”
playing on the bus speaker system, Husband pointed out the major
companies that have embraced this new doo-wop. Wawa and
Harley-Davidson, for instance, have doo-wop themed stores covered in
neon and chrome along Rio Grande Avenue.
The tour also gave visitors ideas.
“We have to go in there,” said one as the bus passed the new doo-wop
flavored Starlux Motel. “Wow,” said another.
When the tour returned to its base at the Wildwoods Convention
Center, visitors like Brie and Pat Walsh departed the bus with a
better appreciation for the motels and their history.
The Washington, D.C., couple came to town at the invitation of their
cousins and had never been to Five Mile Beach before.
“I thought it was a worthwhile $10,” Brie Walsh said. “I'm seeing it
in a new light. I really did learn about the Wildwoods, the history,
the music.”
Pat Walsh said he had no idea how much cars influenced the motels'
development.
Brie Walsh, meanwhile, was anxious for nightfall to arrive so she
could see the neon in all its glory. She had already begun planning
her next trip to the Wildwoods.
“I already picked out a couple (motels) I want to stay at,” she
said.
Lack of Funds Kills Wildwoods' Boat Parade
Cape May County Herald 6/28/2006
WILDWOOD - The annual Christmas in July boat
parade, originally scheduled for July 22, has been cancelled,
Greater Wildwood Jaycees announced June 23. The Grinch didn't
do it. It was lack of funds, the Jaycees deciding that the
parade was "too much for this non-profit organization to
handle," according to a press release. The parade has been a
tradition in the Wildwoods for over 15 years, said Jodie
DiEduardo, chairperson. In years past, the Jaycees said it
relied on the support of the Greater Wildwoods Tourism
Improvement and Development Authority (GWTIDA), Coastal
Broadcasting, and Lighthouse Pointe Restaurant. "Without their
support, it couldn't have ever happened," said DiEduardo.
GWTIDA had provided $10,000 annually for the last two years, but
specified the contribution would decrease over time, according
to reports. This year, the event received $2,000 from GWTIDA.
The plan, according to the Jaycees, was that the event would
grow and attract more sponsors, thus, becoming self-sufficient.
"Unfortunately, not many other businesses or organizations in
the Wildwoods were willing to help with the event, which costs
in excess of $10,000 each year," the press release stated.
"I've sent letters asking for cash donations in the past, and
we've received gift certificates from various businesses to use
as prizes, but we haven't received monetary donations that could
keep the parade going," explained DiEduardo. In addition, the
number of registered boats dropped from approximately 40 boats
in 2000 to 16 in 2005. The only portion of the event that was
expanding in popularity was the house decorating contest, said
DiEduardo. Unfortunately, that was all tied into the parade and
will be cancelled as well, she said. "The event was a huge
amount of work," stated DiEduardo. "Considering all the
paperwork and permits involved, we have to start working in
April and then run right up until July." The only annual
fundraiser for the organization, the Hotel/Motel and Restaurant
Trade show, was cancelled due to poor attendance and dwindling
motel rooms in the area. "(The trade show) decreased to the
point where exhibitors were not interested in participating in
the event anymore," according to the Jaycees. The Jaycees
said that it had hoped another organization might step forward
and take over the parade. For more information, the Greater
Wildwood Jaycees can be reached at P.O. Box 63, Wildwood, NJ
08260. Contact Huggins at: (609) 886-8600 ext. 25
NORTH WILDWOOD — Two city property owners have dropped their legal
challenge to the city's recent revaluation.
In April, property owners Alexander and Margaret Schernecke, on
behalf of the Wildwood Taxpayers Association, filed a lawsuit in
state tax court charging that errors in the revaluation process led
to “violations of the taxpayer's constitutional right to be taxed
fairly and equitably under New Jersey law.”
The lawsuit claimed that the revaluation “resulted in grossly
overvalued, inequitable and inconsistent valuations throughout the
city.”
If the suit had been successful, it would have forced the city to
complete an entirely new revaluation.
The suit named the city along with Tyler Technologies/CLT Division,
which performed the revaluation, as well as the Cape May County Tax
Board and the city's tax assessor.
On Monday, the city received written notification from the
Schernecke's attorney, Philip J. Giannuario, that the lawsuit had
been withdrawn.
The letter was dated June 23, the same day a judge was set to hear a
number of motions filed by the city and others asking that the
lawsuit be dismissed.
“In our estimation ... it was frivolous litigation,” City Solicitor
William J. Kaufmann said Monday.
In court documents, Kaufmann asked Judge Joseph C. Small to dismiss
the Schernecke's complaint for several reasons.
Kaufmann said the couple had failed to exhaust all of the
administrative remedies open to them to challenge the new value
placed on their property. Those options included appealing to the
county tax board and then to the state.
In addition, Kaufmann said the Scherneckes had no standing to act on
behalf of other property owners, 85 percent of whom did not file an
individual appeal with the county tax board.
County Tax Administrator George R. Brown said 1,057 North Wildwood
residents, or about 15 percent of the city's property owners, filed
tax appeals.
The tax board has heard individual North Wildwood appeals since May
and has several more to hear in July, Brown sid Monday.
Kaufmann also noted that the Scherneckes did not challenge the
initial county order which required the city to conduct the
revaluation in the first place.
Kaufmann also challenged the timeliness of the suit. He said notices
of the new assessments were mailed Feb. 10 and property owners had
45 days to appeal, which would mean they had until March 27. The
lawsuit was filed April 3.
Neither the Scherneckes or their attorney could be reached for
comment Monday.
Before the revaluation, the entire city was valued at $794.9
million, and after the revaluation, the town is now said to be worth
about $3 billion.
State denies CAFRA permit for
high-rise hotel in Wildwood
By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609)
463-6716 Press of Atlantic City
Published: Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Updated: Tuesday, June 27, 2006
WILDWOOD — The state has rejected the coastal building application
for the Nouveau Wave Hotel, calling the proposed 25-story hotel out
of character with the surrounding community, a danger to migratory
birds, a public safety risk and damaging to the island's historical
collection of motels.
The developer, listed as PPI Rio Associates LLC in care of Pitcairn
Properties Inc., planned to build a 281-foot, 269-unit
hotel/condominium complex with 4,566 square feet of retail space, a
restaurant and other amenities on the site of the former Rio Motel,
now a vacant lot at the corner of Ocean and Rio Grande avenues.
In a letter issued Friday, the state Department of Environmental
Protection denied the developers the Coastal Area Facility Review
Act, or CAFRA, permit needed to move ahead with construction.
The state found the Nouveau Wave would have met a number of
regulations such as requirements for impervious coverage and plant
materials coverage given the size of the 48,000-square-foot lot.
But Kevin J. Broderick, manager of the Land Use Regulation Program,
offered a long list of reasons why the permit was being denied.
The state found construction of the high-rise was only made possible
by the destruction of the Rio Motel, one of the 1950s and 1960s-era
motels built in the doo-wop style known for exotic names, bold neon
signs and kidney-shaped pools.
Demolition of the Rio began before the CAFRA application was
submitted and an analysis of whether the demolition could have been
avoided could not be done, Broderick wrote.
“This project resulted in the destruction of a historic or
potentially historic property,” the report reads.
Next, the height of the building and its effect on wildlife came
into question.
“The proposed 281-foot high-rise structure would have been
constructed within the lower 10 kilometers of Cape May County near
the tip of the ‘funnel' of the second most important migratory
flyway in North America,” the report reads.
Broderick said the building's height, perpendicular orientation to
the coastline and the fact that it would be lighted at night would
be detrimental to birds.
A hotel of this size and magnitude “would have had an adverse effect
on the endangered and threatened bird species which use this flyway
and is prohibited.”
Broderick also detailed safety issues surrounding the high-rise and
its relation to the smaller properties surrounding the motel site.
He found the hotel would cause a visual intrusion, a deterrent to
air circulation, cast shadows on residences, adversely impact
traffic patterns and threaten property values. Broderick wrote there
was also a concern about the sewer system's ability to handle the
added burden of the high-rise.
Broderick continued, “With regards to public safety, neither the
applicant nor the city has presented evidence that the local fire
department has the equipment to effectively fight a fire within a
building of this size.”
The state also reviewed the city ordinance that permits high-rise
construction up to 250 feet and found that while the ordinance
allows such buildings it does not require them.
It also found the hotel would tower over neighboring structures such
as smaller motels and residential units and was not “visually
compatible with existing scenic resources.”
Ultimately, Broderick found the building did not meet seven sections
of the state's coastal zone management rules and the permit should
be denied.
The developers can appeal the state's finding. They could not be
reached for comment Monday.
Back in the 1920s they were tearing down
fishing shacks to build houses. In the 1940s they tore down
houses to build boarding homes. In the '60s they tore down
boarding homes to build motels. Now they are tearing down motels
to build condos. The Wildwoods have been very flexible over the
years.
Sunday, June 25, 2006
BY CHRIS A. COUROGEN
Of The Patriot-News
To many who vacationed at the Jersey shore in
summers past, the Wildwoods were best known for their abundance of
funky '60s motels.
Built in bold, modernistic style with themes such
as the Orient, pirates and outer space, the motels of North
Wildwood, Wildwood and Wildwood Crest were considered the greatest
concentration of mid-century architecture in the nation.
Despite efforts to save the resort's retro look --
dubbed "doo wop" by preservationists -- the old motels are falling
to make room for an explosion in condos. Some midstaters are
investing in what might be the Jersey shore's hottest real estate
market.
