Saturday, May 25, 2013
Traffic on Long Beach Boulevard steady, but not bad for a holiday weekend.
People wore hooded sweatshirts. The beaches were empty, save for a few surfers and fishermen. Welcome to Memorial Day weekend on Long Beach Island. Look down virtually any street and evidence of the monster storm that roared into Ocean County last Oct. 29 is still very much visible. Contractor trucks are everywhere. Pods perch in front of obviously damaged homes. You can look right through some of the houses, since the sheetrock has been ripped out. The older, small homes took the brunt of Superstorm Sandy. Their more modern counterparts, up on pilings, made it through. The wind whipped up waves on Manahawkin Bay and sent spray over the bulkheads. An electronic sign on Long Beach Boulevard urged residents to save their towns and "sign dune…
Friday, May 24, 2013
Christie visits brother's house in Point Beach, then greets residents on boardwalk in downpour
President Obama may visit Point Pleasant Beach on Tuesday, but it's not definite yet if that will be one of his stops at the Jersey Shore, said Gov. Christie in Point Beach early Friday afternoon. "I don't know yet where he's going," said Christie, on the second level of the Boardwalk Bar and Grill on Friday, in between doing television interviews and greeting Jenkinson's owners and other well-wishers. "But, yes, this is one of the places that's being looked at," he said. "It's up to the White House where he goes. They tell us where they want to go and we bring them." "Put in a good word for Point Beach, Governor," said Point Beach Councilman William Mayer, smiling. "Put in a good word for Point Beach? OK!" replied Christie, matter of …
Thursday, May 23, 2013
This will be Obama's first visit to Shore since just after Sandy
President Obama and Gov. Christie will visit the Jersey Shore on Tuesday, according to The Record in Bergen County. Herb Jackson of the Record and northjersey.com reports President Obama will visit the Jersey Shore on Tuesday with Gov. Christie. This will be Obama's first visit to the area since Oct. 31, just after the storm struck. More information can be found here.
Residents must meet income guidelines, show proof of damage and residency
Berkeley residents recovering from Superstorm Sandy can apply for grants from the Robin Hood Foundation on the township's website. Berkeley recently received a $200,000 grant from the nonprofit organization, which will be doled out to eligible residents in the form of gift cards, appliance purchases or payments made by the township on behalf of residents. No money will be given out and the program is only available to full-time township residents, Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. said. "The township applied to Robin Hood for a grant to help the residents of Berkeley, so many of whom have found insurance and/or federal aid to be inadequate in dealing with all the costs associated with the storm," the mayor said. Any bills paid on behalf of a grant…
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Island Beach will not be included in Army Corps of Engineers' dune and beach replenishment program
South Seaside Park resident Donald Whiteman's family has lived on the barrier island section of Berkeley Township for seven decades. And they know a washout from a storm when they see one, going all the way back to the Hurricane of 1938, he has said at more than one Berkeley Township Council meeting. Whiteman again urged township officials at the May 5 meeting to pressure the state Department of Environmental Protection to include Island Beach in the Army Corps of Engineers dune and beach replenishment program. "Residents in South Seaside Park who stayed during the storm recognized there was more than one breach," he said. "Island Beach had about five washouts." Whiteman was one of those who rode out the storm. He noticed problems at the …
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Park now opened from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Island Beach State Park has returned to pre-Superstorm Sandy hours and more of the park has been opened to visitors, state Department of Environmental Protection Commission Bob Martin said. “We are keeping pace with the Christie Administration’s goal of having all of our state parks, including Island Beach State Park, fully operational for the peak summer season,” Martin said. “Having this popular destination getting closer to normal operations is emblematic of the state’s drive to have the Shore open for business this summer.’’ The park is now open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. for all guests. Fishing access has also been extended to 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. The DEP recently awarded a $268,000 contract to a New Brunswick-based Tekton Development Corp…
Monday, April 29, 2013
What do you think of the governor's statements that are angering conservative critics?
Gov. Christie told MSNBC Monday morning "the President has kept his promises" regarding Sandy relief and that he has "no complaints." Christie, a Republican with likely presidential aspirations, also said on the "Morning Joe" program that he tells his conservative critics that he was just "doing his job" when he worked with Democrat Obama in the grim weeks and months following Superstorm Sandy. Christie continues to get heat from Republicans, especially their conservative members, for his statements about how he was being "responsible" welcoming Obama and working with him when he made his early November, post-Sandy and pre-election visit to the Garden State, as noted by Joe Scarborough, host of "Morning Joe" and a former Republican …
Many storm victims have become Sandy zombies
They are easy to spot. They don't smile much. They look tired. They are tired. They are numb. They are the Sandy zombies. They are fried emotionally and physically from half a year of battling to go home, if they still have a home to go to. I am a Sandy zombie. Is it possible it's been half a year since that horrific day and night when Superstorm Sandy blasted the Jersey Shore and changed some lives forever? Six months since we left our Bayville home with three terrified cats and made our way to family in Toms River? Six months since we've been living in a basement? We knew Sandy was going to be bad, even when we evacuated at noon on Oct. 29. Trees were already toppling in Pine Beach, taking down power lines. But we didn't know then we …
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Sandy victims can also still apply online for physical damages until May 1 deadline, economic damages until July 31
The federal Small Business Administration will close the SBA Disaster Center in Manahawkin on May 1, SBA spokesman Mark Jamison said. The center will close due to a "steady decrease" in activity, he said. The Manahawkin Center is located in the Southern Ocean County Chamber of Commerce building on West Bay Avenue. Hours: 9 a.m. – 6 p.m., Monday through Friday 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Saturday. Closing: May 1 at close of business day The SBA is also encouraging Hurricane Sandy survivors to visit one of the centers before they close, and reminding them the deadline to return applications for physical damage is May 1. The deadline to return economic injury applications is July 31. Survivors may also apply online using the Electronic …
Friday, April 26, 2013
Representatives from state and federal agencies will be on hand to answer storm-related questions
Berkeley and Lacey residents who need help dealing with Superstorm Sandy can get some answers today, when the state sets up a "mobile cabinet' at the Berkeley Township Recreation Center. The event will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the center at 630 Route 9 South in Bayville, said Sean Conner, a spokesman for Gov. Chris Christie's office. Representatives from state and federal agencies will be on hand,including the Governor’s Office of Constituent Relations, the Department of Banking and Insurance, Department of Environmental Protection, Department of Community Affairs, the Business Action Center, FEMA and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP.) They will assist residents and discuss ongoing recovery and rebuilding efforts. Residents …
TRHSN
9:29 pm on Saturday, May 25, 2013
You can forget the hype, it is not going to be a good summer on the Jersey Shore. Come Labor Day, all you are going to hear is how bad the summer was for local business. I'm not being a pessimist, it is just the way it is going to be in 2013. more ›