Memorial Day usually signifies the start of summer at the Jersey Shore. We usually see populations of our beachside communities double or triple between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Many local businesses rely on summertime tourist dollars to get them through the rest of the year. Will Jersey Shore beaches open before the start of tourist season? If so, how do we ensure health safety precautions are followed to avoid the further spread of COVID-19? What will the “new normal” look like?
Jersey Shore Beaches: A New Normal for Summer
They’re Working on It
Local government officials are trying to work out a schedule with Governor Murphy to reopen Jersey Shore beaches and businesses using a regional approach. Longport’s Mayor Nick Russo believes more emphasis needs to be placed on protecting nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Approximately half of the deaths reportedly from COVID-19 in both Atlantic and Cape May Counties come from these facilities alone. With social distancing recommendations in place, he believes that businesses and beaches should be allowed to open back up.
One of the fears of a tiered approach to opening the beaches back up is that there will be a rush of people. That makes it more difficult to follow social distancing guidelines. So, government officials are talking about coordinating the opening up of beaches all at one time. If that happens, they hope to spread out beachgoers more evenly amongst all Jersey Shore beaches.
Jersey Shore Beaches and Boardwalks
The world-famous Atlantic City Boardwalk and beaches never closed. Ventor’s boardwalk closed on April 3rd and remains closed today. However, officials just announced that they plan on reopening Ventnor beaches next Friday, May 8th. Even so, the boardwalk remains off-limits for the foreseeable future. As of April 9th, officials limited Margate beach use to pedestrian traffic only. Walking, jogging or exercising on the beach is OK as long as you maintain a distance of six feet between yourself and others. However, sunbathing, organized sports, groups of people, and even sitting in chairs are not permitted on the beach. While the Memorial Day parade may not happen on May 25th, Longport plans on reopening its beaches in time for Memorial Day weekend.
What Might a “New Normal” Look Like?
Beach blankets set six feet apart from each other. Possibly hand sanitizer stations set up before entering the beach. Even lifeguard stations would change. Instead of two lifeguards per station, we may only see one. However, some officials suggest putting up additional lifeguard stations to allow for enough coverage for the beach while practicing social distancing. Public restrooms may close down more often to allow cleaning and sanitizing to happen more frequently. Limiting beach access points is also one of the potential ways to operate beaches in a post-COVID-19 world.
It will still be up to us citizens to practice social distancing and safety precautions to keep us, our friends, our family, and our communities safe. The “new normal” isn’t that hard to maintain if we all do our part.
Sherri Lilienfeld, Apex Prime Realty, Your Source for Jersey Shore Real Estate