Philadelphia local news, sports, jobs, cars, homes

Author: Amy S. Rosenberg

  • 🍦 Is waiting in line the point? | Down the Shore

    🍦 Is waiting in line the point? | Down the Shore

    Here we are, Fourth of July in the rearview mirror. Hang on, make those beach plans because it’ll be Labor Day before you know it.

    It was a long holiday weekend that had towns and beaches bursting at the seams (also my house, with guests). But the heat that descended on Philly — and the towns just over the bridge from the Shore — never made it to the beach.

    Nights cooled off for fireworks, and the daytime breezes stayed blissfully cool off the ocean. Sorry if you missed it, but the Shore was mostly just lovely.

    Which I guess made those ridiculous lines you all waited in — for coffee, for doughnuts, for subs, for ice cream — a bit more bearable?

    What is it about being on vacation that makes it tolerable to wait an hour for coffee in Ventnor, for doughnuts in Margate, for ice cream in Stone Harbor?

    We asked our ever-ready group of Shore Line texters (sign up here) about these wild waits, and while some swore they’d never partake, or only go on off-hours, or find a way to circumvent, others made the case that those lines have actually become a sentimental, even enjoyable, part of their Shore journey. Here’s a sampling:

    I’ll wait in a longer line down the shore. It’s tradition and fun to meet people in line.

    It is akin to vacation time. No schedule; fun time. You just want go enjoy and socialize. Standing in line is a part of that experience and considered acceptable for that reason.

    Only for Springer’s Ice Cream or The Lobster House. Hanging out on the wharf waiting for The Lobster House is as much fun as eating at The Lobster House!

    Welcome to summers at the shore. The one thing you can count on is lines at the ice cream establishments. I often kid that, at a certain time on the weekends, an imaginary bell goes off and people rush out to get ice cream. No way around it.

    Standing in line for ice cream is a social event as well as eating the ice cream. Also, the ice cream is usually special.

    There’s just certain things we have to have for tradition’s sake and willing to wait 1-2 times a year.

    OK, if you all say so! Glad you’re enjoying the lines, and so no need for me to share my avoid-the-line secrets!

    📮 What are some essential Shore traditions you have to do no matter how long the wait? What memories or moments stick with you over the years of coming down the Shore? Keep scrolling for one of my essential Shore memories below, recreated this weekend for a new generation. Plus, send me yours here for a chance to be featured in this newsletter!

    Have ideas or news tips about the Shore or this newsletter? Send them to me here.

    ⛅ After a couple of rainy days, some beautiful weather appears to be on the way.

    — Amy S. Rosenberg (Follow me at @amysrosenberg, 📷 on Instagram at @amysrosenberg. 📧 Email me here.)

    If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here.

    Shore talk

    🧓 Atlantic County has joined Cape May County in having more people over 65 than under 18, new census figures show.

    🔉Somers Point Council tabled a proposed ordinance that would have allowed outdoor music past 11 p.m.

    🏄 The coolest people went surfing under the fireworks.

    📱 His dream Shore house popped up on his phone while eating at a Wildwood tavern.

    🏀 Knicks coach Rick Brunson brought the Larry O’Brien championship trophy around to some Margate hot spots, including Tideline and Betty’s.

    🎡 Eustace Mita tells the Cape May County Herald’s Bill Barlow he will be flexible with his hotel plans for Ocean City’s Wonderland Pier site.

    What to eat/What to do

    🐷 North Wildwood is hosting the annual New Jersey State Barbecue Championship & Angelsea Blues Festival.

    😌 Longport’s new Beach Terrace park with a zen garden is open.

    🎙️ The Stylistics will perform in Cape May on Sunday.

    🍴 Craig LaBan has food recs from LBI to Margate. He seemed especially fond of the deep-fried green tomato tots at Ellis’ Chicken & Crab Cakes in Beach Haven and the spicy Oaxacan chorizo meatballs from the newly reopened Iron Room in A.C.

    🧘🏽‍♀️Try free yoga in Atlantic City’s O’Donnell Park.

    🎹 Angeloni’s Club Madrid is hosting Sunday piano bar karaoke with Joe McGinty, former keyboardist for the Psychedelic Furs and Atlantic City native.

    🛟 South Jersey lifeguard races have begun! Here’s a schedule.

    🤫 Travel and Leisure thinks Stone Harbor is a secret and has some recs.

    Shore snapshot

    Elena D’Angelo and Dre Cook, of the Scranton area, dance during the annual Team 62 fundraising event for the Eagles Autism Foundation at the outdoor Paddy’s Green, in Sea Isle City, Wednesday, June 24, 2026.

    🧠 Trivia time

    In 2001, this city’s fireworks over the ocean led to a real show: The barge caught fire and burned out of control for hours, forcing the rescue of seven workers and a cascade of exploding shells.

    Was this city:

    A. Ocean City

    B. Atlantic City

    C. Avalon

    D. Seaside Heights

    If you think you know the answer, click on my pal Brendan Shur’s story from the wee hours of July 5 that year to find out (I went home to put my daughter to bed, what can I say).

    Your thoughts on: Wonderland Pier

    Ocean City’s City Council finally made it official: The old Wonderland Pier site was designated as being in need of rehabilitation. Let the negotiations over the hotel begin!

    Here are your thoughts:

    Bruce Sauerwine: It’s time to move on and build a hotel at the site. Mita proposed a nice looking hotel but some people want to live in the past and pretend that an amusement arcade was still a viable option at this time.

    Kerri McGinley Kistler: There is absolutely no need or justification for Mita’s hotel plan. … “Hey kids, let’s go see the hotel”- said nobody ever!

    Jeremy Maziarz: It is time for the Wonderland Pier to be re-developed. An amusement park use for this property is no longer a viable option. A mixed-use plan including a luxury hotel may actually be the best use for the site. If the height restrictions are an issue, then start the negotiation process with the developer. If he wants zoning relief, then he should offer up significant concessions to Ocean City to make it a win-win scenario.

    Debbie Federico: We love Playland’s Castaway Cove, but it is now too small to accommodate all of the young children, strollers and families that use it. It would be very beneficial to reopen Wonderland.

    Your Shore memory

    This week’s Shore memory is my own.

    For years, I had a toddler bike seat on an old green bike we’d bought for the boardwalk, and loved riding with one of my daughters on the back. I kept that bike seat on for much longer than they used it, sometimes sticking groceries into it. The rides were so special, so much fun, our way to wave to people we knew, pass the years, that I couldn’t bear to remove it, but finally took it off and stashed it in the basement.

    I kept riding that bike though, a Specialized hybrid which was already used in 1995, and extremely used now, decades of sea air rust swirling through it. But let me tell you, that bike has good bones (better not to try to switch gears).

    This past week, we dusted off the old bike seat, replaced the brake cables on the beloved bike, figured out how to replace the missing straps on the seat, and clipped it right there onto the back of the same green bike. And who wriggled happily into it under his new green toddler helmet, ready to do the obligatory “touch the end” at both the Margate and Atlantic City sides of the Boardwalk but my 2-year-old grandson.

    Send us your Shore memory! In 200 words, tell me how the Shore taps into something deep for you, and we will publish them in this space during the summer.

    By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.

  • His dream Shore house popped up on his phone over lunch at a Wildwood tavern | How I Bought This House

    His dream Shore house popped up on his phone over lunch at a Wildwood tavern | How I Bought This House

    The buyer: Jacob Wilson, 43, attorney.

    The house: An 800-square-foot two-bedroom, 1½-bath bungalow built in 1930 in Wildwood.

    The price: Listed for $444,000; purchased for $441,000.

    The agent: Marion Rowland, ReMax Surfside.

    The ask: Wilson lives in Venice Beach, Calif., but grew up in Wildwood and Atlantic County and missed the East Coast. When he was a toddler, the family lived at the Regency in North Wildwood, where his parents were the offseason managers. “It was around the time The Shining came out, and my aunt used to tease them about living there with my sister and me when the whole of Wildwood was shut down!“ he said.

    Wildwood was in his DNA for good. His dream was to buy a second home in Wildwood, a place with some old Shore charm, where he and the family could gather and revive traditions.

    The search: Wilson’s aunt is a local real estate agent in Wildwood, and they “combed the market for months,” he said.

    He put in an offer on a renovated triplex in Wildwood Crest toward summer’s end in 2024 but was outbid. “It got 12 other offers above the asking price,” Wilson said. “They were asking $575[000] I was willing to pay them $600,000.”

    After a day of house hunting in September 2024, the two sat down for lunch at the Dogtooth Bar & Grill. “We saw a listing two blocks away pop up,” he said. “We drove over to the house and started the process.”

    The appeal: As soon as he walked in the house, Wilson said he thought, “I know what I need to make this good.”

    The house checked a lot of boxes for him: charm, old-school bungalow feel, close to the ocean.

    Jacob Wilson added a dishwasher to the kitchen along with other improvements at his home in Wildwood.

    “My mom’s been a Realtor in the area for 40 years,” he said. “She has a 1900 Victorian. I’ve always admired the work my parents did on that home. My cousin had a Craftsman bungalow. It reminds me of houses here in Venice.”

    Both Wilson and his aunt appreciated being able to buy an original property in Wildwood and not tear it down.

    “I have deep ties to Wildwood,” he said. “I really didn’t want to do that.”

    A house across from his was recently torn down and a triplex built in its place. Plus, his house has a backyard.

    “That just doesn’t exist anymore,” he said. “In the offseason, I can hear the waves from my backyard.”

    The deal: Wilson said he put in an offer for the asking price and beat two other offers. “The house sold in three days,” he said. The inspection revealed some termite damage, and the seller reduced the price by $3,000, he said.

    “The work to remedy the problem was estimated to be over $10,000,” he said, “and it cost me around $15,000 altogether with foundation work and pest treatment.”

    Because of the competitive environment, he said, “I took the $3,000 reduction to make the sale happen.”

    Jacob Wilson wanted his Wildwood property to feel “like a modern beach house” and was happy that the previous owners had redone the floors with light gray planks.

    His aunt was proud of him for buying and preserving a house in Wildwood, he said, the place where two of his grandparents were born.

    The money: Wilson did it in a traditional way: 20% down payment, a mortgage with the local Ocean First Bank. “Kudos to Ocean First,” he said. “They don’t sell the mortgage.” His mortgage rate was 7%, higher due to its being an investment property, he said.

    Using the property part of the summer as a weekly rental and a longer-term winter rental covers his mortgage, he said. “I don’t really have too many out-of-pocket expenses,” he said. “Taxes are $4,000 a year. Utility bills a few hundred a month.”

    The move: There were some changes. He liked the way the former owners used gray plank boards to replace the original parquet wood that made it “more like a modern beach house.”

    But, Wilson said, “some things inside were a little too country.”

    “I wanted to make it more beachy,” he said. There was shelving in the doorways that he got rid of, and some closets that inexplicably had the doors removed and curtains put up. Luckily, he found the original doors in the attic and put them back on. He replaced the door knobs and repainted the entire interior.

    “The big thing that showed up was termite damage,” he said. “I had to do a lot of foundation work when I bought the place.” He replaced the old insulation with spray insulation, he said, and installed a dishwasher and new refrigerator.

    “A lot of things like that to make it look sharp,” he said.

    A cozy bedroom in the Wildwood bungalow.

    Life after close: This will be his second summer using the Wildwood bungalow. He’s spending a month there over June and July and expecting a stream of visitors to revive old family traditions. He plans to block out more time for himself in the shoulder seasons.

    “It’s all kind of like nostalgia for me because we spent so much time there as a kid,” he said.

    “I had a lot of strong feelings about going back,” he said. “As an adult, I appreciate it more.”

    About six months after he bought the house, “Someone called me and asked if I was interested in selling it,” he said. No way.

    “Keeping it long term is my goal,” he said. “I feel like I made a good investment choice. No regrets.”

    Did you recently buy a home in the Philadelphia area or South Jersey? Share the story of how you did it. Email Inquirer real estate reporters at properties@inquirer.com.

  • Ocean City Council moved forward on a plan to build a luxury hotel at the old Wonderland Pier site

    Ocean City Council moved forward on a plan to build a luxury hotel at the old Wonderland Pier site

    OCEAN CITY, N.J. — The proposal to build a luxury hotel on the site of the closed Gillian’s Wonderland Pier on Ocean City’s Boardwalk got a long-sought boost Thursday, 6/25.

    The City Council voted 5-2 to declare the site at 600 Boardwalk “in need of rehabilitation,” a designation sought by developer Eustace Mita.

    Council will now begin a process of negotiating with Mita over what ultimately gets built on the property, which for decades attracted families to its rides and arcades.

    Reached by text message, Mita called the action a “great vote for the populace of Ocean City ! A win for progress in the future of America’s greatest family resort.”

    He added, “But this is only the first step in the process.”

    Mita has proposed a seven-story luxury hotel, but a committee appointed by council to study the property suggested that a smaller hotel might be more suitable.

    Council member Dave Winslow, originally opposed to the designation, said he now saw the rehabilitation designation as a way for the City Council to have more input in what ends up being built.

    “There’s an urgency to restore the north end of the Boardwalk to its former glory,” Winslow said. “The designation gives zero approval to build anything. It puts the future development of the property in the hands of this governing body to make decisions on scope.”

    Council President Terry Crowley Jr. also stressed that the designation was the beginning of a process. He said the council would be mindful of the conclusions of a Boardwalk committee that urged the smaller footprint with public entertainment along the Boardwalk, and which would be mindful of neighbors.

    “We want a state-of-the-art product at that end of the Boardwalk,” he said.

    The nearly three-hour meeting included numerous residents speaking against the resolution, suggesting there might be legal action taken if council passed it, and urging them to wait until July when a newly elected anti-hotel council member, Jim Kelly, will be sworn in.

    A rendering of the proposed new Icona in Wonderland Resort, which is proposed to be built on the site of the old Wonderland Pier. The proposal for a 252-room resort includes saving the iconic Ferris wheel and carousel.

    The meeting was moved to the city’s Music Pier to accommodate the number of people, and turned heated at times.

    Several speakers asked that several council members recuse themselves, accusing them of conflict of interests. Others said declaring Boardwalk frontage in need of rehabilitation in a wealthy beach town was illogical.

    “The rehabilitation designation was created to help struggling deteriorated communities revitalize themselves,” said resident Dave Hayes, during public comment. “It was never meant to apply to expensive beachfront properties so wealthy developers like Eustace Mita could further increase their profits.”

    Numerous business owners on the Boardwalk and elsewhere in town urged the council to move forward on the project.

    “It’s been the better part of a year,” said Caitlin Quirk, president of the Downtown Merchants Association. “You’ve done your due diligence. You’ve done your homework.”

    While neighbors argued the hotel idea was not in keeping with the family entertainment of the Boardwalk, business owners said the entire economic viability of the boardwalk was at stake.

    Mark Raab, whose family owns numerous Boardwalk properties, said one of the stores near the closed Wonderland has no tenant this summer and is boarded up.

    “Next year, it’s even dimmer,” he said. “We have five storefronts up for lease, two definitely not coming back. This is a crossroads that we are enduring. Thousands of people are going to walk by that boarded-up store and wonder why. We are out of time.”

    Council member Jody Levchuk, who runs Jilly’s Arcade on the Boardwalk, said all the planning reports point to “the demise of the north end of the Boardwalk” if action wasn’t taken.

    Mita, who has proposed back in November 2024 turning the property into Icona in Wonderland, had sought the designation initially as a way to fast track his hotel idea.

    That did not happen.

    In January, the city’s planning board deadlocked on whether to recommend declaring the site in need of rehabilitation and sent it back to Council.

    Mita in the meantime moved on to other projects, including a “Soul Sanctuary” Catholic retreat in Ireland on the former grounds of a notorious abbey.

    The future of Wonderland has generated protracted and heated debate in the Shore town, with residents initially vowing to save Wonderland and later arguing that “big hotel” would be a “big mistake.”

    While some cling to the idea that an amusement park could still be opened there, most opponents have tried to argue that Mita’s proposal is too big for the site, would compromise nearby residential neighborhoods, and is not in keeping with the Boardwalk town’s family vibe and need for family entertainment.

    How big the hotel will be remains a topic to be negotiated now between the city and Mita, who bought the land from Mayor Jay Gillian and initially leased it back to him to continue to run Wonderland.

    Gillian made the decision to close the 65-year-old institution in October 2024, saying it was no longer financially viable. He declared personal bankruptcy this year, in part from failed business ventures. Voters elected him to a fifth term in May.

    Council member Tony Polcini said his yes vote was “to give hope to the people that work hard,” in seasonal businesses.

    “The beach and the Boardwalk are a part of our livelihood and why our homes are worth so much,” he said. “I really truly feel that moving this process forward to a yes will allow us to negotiate and do what is best for Ocean City.”

    Voting no were council members Keith Hartzell and Sean Barnes, who said the regular zoning and planning process would be a better way to move forward.

  • 🎠 Ocean City nears decision time | Down the Shore

    🎠 Ocean City nears decision time | Down the Shore

    It may finally be decision time in Ocean City for the site of the former Wonderland Pier at 600 Boardwalk. It’s been nearly two years since the beloved amusement park owned by Mayor Jay Gillian shut down.

    Eustace Mita, the developer who proposed a luxury hotel with a seashore theme anchored by Gillian’s old carousel and Ferris wheel and maybe a kiddie ride or two, told me he’s in the dark about what will happen. The Icona developer has turned his attention to other things lately, he says, like building a Soul Sanctuary Catholic retreat on the grounds of a once-notorious abbey in County Cavan, Ireland.

    Closer to home, Ocean City’s City Council is scheduled to vote Thursday evening on whether to designate the Wonderland site is in need of rehabilitation, a designation Mita has been seeking that would then allow a negotiation with Council over zoning and other matters (the Boardwalk is not zoned for a hotel).

    The council hired a planner to come up with a report, which pretty much said what an earlier report said: that there is justification for such a designation “to prevent further underutilization and deterioration of the Property and to encourage redevelopment of the Property.”

    The city’s planning board in January deadlocked on a recommendation and punted the topic back to Council.

    There are a lot of strong feelings about this in town, though the Save Wonderland movement seems to have resigned itself to the idea that an amusement park is probably no longer in the site’s future.

    Council is expecting a big crowd and has moved the 6 p.m. meeting to the City’s Music Pier. Stay tuned.

    📮 Is it time for Ocean City to move ahead with the hotel plan at 600 Boardwalk? Is it time for another idea? Let me know what you think by replying to this email.

    Have ideas or news tips about the Shore or this newsletter? Send them to me here.

    🌤️ It’s quite lovely out there. Hope it lasts. The recent spate of land breeze days that left the beach a bit suffocating and ocean water temps plunging was not that great.

    — Amy S. Rosenberg (Find me at @amysrosenberg. 📷 Follow me on Insta at @amysrosenberg. 📧 Email me here.)

    If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here.

    Shore talk

    🚲 New Jersey says it is now taking appointments for people to get their e-bikes registered, as a new law requires (though not of Pennsylvanians). Read more about the confusing law here.

    🚨 An Atlantic City police officer who was shot in the femoral artery, then saved during surgery at the city’s emergency room, was released from the hospital as hundreds gathered.

    👰‍♀️ Taylor Swift may have other ideas than Sea Isle City for Jason and Kylie Kelce over July 4 weekend.

    🐢 Diamondback terrapins are trying to find suitable nesting spots and are crossing busy Shore roads, especially causeways and blocks near the bay. Please watch out for them!

    🤍 A plane took off from Ocean City’s airport and crashed on its way back to Maryland, killing its three occupants.

    👑 Egg Harbor Township wrestling alum and Preps Pizza employee Kylie Wright was crowned Miss New Jersey.

    🏀 Margate’s favorite basketball superstar, Jalen Brunson, celebrated Father’s Day with brunch at Steve & Cookie’s. His wife, Ali Marks Brunson, is teaching (sold-out) workout classes in Ocean City.

    What to eat/What to do

    🎡 Go to a pretend Shore Boardwalk at Six Flags.

    🏁 Watch Atlantic City’s offshore powerboat high-speed Grand Prix.

    📖 Read Brother Epistles, by Shore resident Shanda McManus, a memoir of her brother’s Christmas Eve 1992 shooting death in Philly. McManus talks here about holding joy and grief on the same page.

    🫐 Savor South Jersey’s amazing blueberries here.

    ✈️ Fly direct from Atlantic City to Vero Beach on newly announced flights from Breeze Airways.

    🍗 Check out the new New Jersey Black Heritage Trail marker commemorating Chicken Bone Beach in Atlantic City, and the city’s new Black Cultural Heritage Tour.

    🏖️ Spend a perfect weekend on 7 Mile Island.

    🇺🇸 Indulge in a Mino’s Bakery strawberry shortcake (red, white) and the iconic blueberry pie (blue) at Ventnor’s 7311 and get ready for fireworks.

    Shore snapshot

    From left: Lifeguards Kyle Satt, Gavin Mogck, and Paul Connor patrol the beach in rainy and foggy conditions on Memorial Day 2026 in Cape May.

    🧠 Trivia time

    The pizza magnate whose family owns half of Ocean Casino is now buying the entire pie, and will be sole owner of one of Atlantic City’s most successful casinos.

    Which pizza company is it?

    A. Lorenzo’s

    B. Domino’s

    C. Tony’s Baltimore Grill

    D. Little Caesars

    If you think you know the answer, click on this story to find out.

    Ask Down the Shore: Avoiding traffic

    A reader wrote: “Friday used to be the heavy traffic day from Philadelphia to the shore on the Expressway. Now the congestion seems to start as early as noon on Thursday and continues straight through Friday night.”

    We turned to our Shore Line group chat (join us here!) and asked: Which is the best window to drive to the Shore?

    Here are some replies:

    • I go down, believe best time is at 5:30-6 am or after 7 on Friday, still light out at both times, don’t like to drive when dark.
    • Here’s my solution to avoiding heavy traffic to and from the shore. Go down on Wednesday before MDW and come back on Wednesday after LDW (it helps to be retired!).
    • I work in Center City so I leave after work on Friday’s typically. Hit the road around 5:30, use Ben Franklin. Then on the way to the AC, 42 is a parking lot! Anymore, I’m thinking early morning Thursday or Friday before 8 a.m.? Just a guess.
    • No window is better than another — I gave up and moved to the shore.

    Have another Shore dilemma? Or an opinion on traffic? Let us know what you think by replying to this email.

    Your Shore memory

    I’ve been talking to a lot of people about changes in Sea Isle City for an upcoming story, and Diana Dougherty shared these reminiscences of the old days:

    My husband was an altar boy at St. Joe’s. When we got married, we started renting for a couple weeks every year with in-laws, wonderful times, low key restaurants, crowds not as bad, felt safe, no issue with teenagers. Now it’s all changed in maybe last 20-25 years. We finally build our own house in 1985. It looks like a tiny house to what is now. Miss my beloved place, but will never sell and just redid inside.

    Send us your Shore memory in 200 words! Tell us how the Shore taps into something deep for you, and we will publish them in this space during the summer.

    By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.

  • Hillary Bor closed Philly’s Pumpkin BYOB in 2024 and moved down the Shore. Now, she’s selling hot dogs.

    Hillary Bor closed Philly’s Pumpkin BYOB in 2024 and moved down the Shore. Now, she’s selling hot dogs.

    MARGATE, N.J. — Hillary Bor had had enough of running the acclaimed Pumpkin BYOB in Philly after two decades.

    Around the time Pumpkin closed in 2024, she uprooted her life and moved to the Shore full time. Also around this time, she fell in love with Tim Nedzwecky, whom she met through their respective white pit bulls, Piggy and Loki.

    They hadn’t planned to launch a food venture, but when Scott Bonar, of Scott’s Dock on the bay in Margate, talked about wanting a food option, the pieces fell together.

    Dogs. The Shore. A view.

    Thus was born Dock Dogs (hot dogs with a view), a permanent fixture next to Scott’s Dock, with a complimentary lovely sunset over the bay.

    Tim Nedzwecky and Hillary Bor, the former owner of Pumpkin BYOB in Philadelphia, opened Dock Dogs on the bay in Margate.

    “We wanted to do something together,” Bor said. “He asked us, ‘You guys want to do food?’”

    Hot dog stands have a history in Margate. There’s Junior’s nearby and the old Lenny’s, famous for its pepper hash, which was set up back in the 1960s and 1970s near Lucy the Elephant. Now, Dock Dogs has started carrying — by popular demand — the pepper hash from the original Lenny’s outside Philadelphia.

    But does running a hot dog cart, even one with a beautiful view, offer fulfillment after owning Pumpkin BYOB with its elevated cuisine and prime South Street Graduate Hospital location, for 20 years?

    Bor does not hesitate to answer.

    “This is so fulfilling,” said Bor, who rides a bike everywhere and still doesn’t own a car. Plus, “I get to be with my soulmate. I get to be with wonderful people to work with. We get to be on the water.”

    “It’s a dream come true,” said Nedzwecky.

    Tim Nedzwecky and Hillary Bor at their hot dog stand on the bay in Margate, Docks Dogs. Bor is the former owner of Pumpkin BYOB in Philadelphia, which closed in 2024.

    Dock Dogs has a menu item in memory of Scott’s mother, Robin, a familiar face around the marina, who died in 2021: Robin’s Reuben with Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing. ($12).

    The Windy Dog with mustard, relish, onions, peppers, pickles, celery salt, tomatoes, and a side of Lenny’s pepper hash, at Dock Dogs in Margate, opened by Hillary Bor, the former owner of Pumpkin BYOB in Philadelphia, and partner Tim Nedzwecky.

    All hot dogs are Hebrew National and served on Martin’s potato rolls with kettle chips, pickles, and coleslaw.

    There’s chicken and egg salad options (no hot dog) as well, and the Keeper, a crab cake shaped like a hot dog ($22). The Captain’s Choice ($14) has bacon, barbecue sauce, and cheddar and a “simple sailor” hotdog with choice of ketchup, mustard, relish, sauerkraut, and sriracha is $10.

    They’re hoping people come for the food as well as the vibe. Mondays are for families, with face painting and other kid-friendly activities out back, where picnic tables line the docks. You can come by boat. Wednesdays feature a house band.

    There’s also a “Hook the hot dog” game that carries a prize.

    The response has been enthusiastic.

    “Saturday night, the vibe here, it was so special,” said Nedzwecky. “Everybody, the kids, were dancing.”

    “We were looking at each other like, ‘Oh my God it’s amazing.’, ” said Bor.

    “It makes us really happy,” said Nedzwecky. “People are saying this is exactly what this area needed.”

  • New Jersey’s new e-bike law is causing confusion down the Shore. Pennsylvanians are exempt.

    New Jersey’s new e-bike law is causing confusion down the Shore. Pennsylvanians are exempt.

    VENTNOR, N.J. — The e-bike revolution will not be coming to Ventnor’s famously chaotic boardwalk. The city banned motorized bicycles decades ago, and raised the penalties in 2023, citing dangers from the speeds and heavier bicycles.

    Ocean City tried doing the same in 2024, but reversed course on the lowest speed e-bikes after an outcry, particularly from seniors who have grown to cherish the electric bikes that take them farther and faster, and against the wind without breaking a sweat.

    Wildwood allows them but has a 10 mph speed limit for any vehicle. Atlantic City prohibits them.

    But while boardwalk rules vary, the state’s e-bike law, passed in January with a grace period through July 19, requires New Jerseyans with e-bikes to register them and, in some cases, purchase insurance.

    The law was adopted amid a sense of urgency after a 13-year-old Scotch Plains boy on an electric bike was killed in a collision with a landscaping truck. Earlier this month, Chase Sudano, 16, a rising wrestling star at St. Augustine Prep, was killed after he collided with a UPS delivery truck in Southhampton, Burlington County.

    Community mourns 16-year-old killed in e-bike crash

    The law defines two classes of e-bikes: low-speed, where the motor assists only while pedaling and shuts off when the bicycles reaches 20 miles per hour, and a motorized bicycle that is throttle-capable of assisted speeds up to 28 miles per hour.

    All users of both categories must have a permit or driver’s license and wear helmets. Nobody under 15 can ride one at all.

    ‘It’s a mess’

    So far, there is no way to actually comply. The state’s own Motor Vehicle Commission website has no way to register an e-bike. The state now says it will begin taking appointments only after the grace period ends.

    Scott Chambers, owner of Zippy’s Bikes in Wildwood, says the new e-bike law in New Jersey “is a mess,” with no way for people to comply with registration requirements, and confusion over other issues.

    “It’s a mess,” said Scott Chambers, owner of Zippy’s Bikes in Wildwood. “It’s so overwhelming because they created this law, I don’t want to say haphazardly, but they rushed it.”

    Crawford said his customers are reluctant to buy an e-bike until they know they can ride it in compliance with the law.

    He says the law doesn’t mention e-tricycles, so it’s not clear where those might fall. (The state now says the law does not apply to e-tricycles.)

    In Ventnor, there’s a big electronic sign on Atlantic Avenue alerting people to the new law’s helmet, insurance, and registration requirements. A new sign was added to the Boardwalk itself, highlighting two prohibited categories: e-bikes and dogs.

    Ventnor police Lt. Bryan Gaviria says the department will have its hands full, educating and, at some point, enforcing the new e-bike law.

    But first, he said, they need some answers themselves.

    “We’re absolutely waiting for clarity all around,” he said, adding that the city’s bicycle officers are choosing to ride on non-electric bikes because they don’t want to be out of compliance themselves, and they don’t want to be on e-bikes while enforcing an e-bike ban.

    Ventnor installed this sign on the Boardwalk warning that electric bikes were prohibited (as well as dogs). The state’s new e-bike law goes into effect July 19, but Pennsylvanians will not be required to register their e-bikes while in New Jersey, the state says.

    Waiting on the state

    The state recently clarified some of the issues that were causing confusion.

    William Connolly, the press secretary for the N.J. Motor Vehicle Commission, says the MVC will begin offering appointments for e-bike licensing and registration in July. The law’s grace period ends July 19.

    “We will be making an announcement later this month about when appointments will become available, along with offering newly updated resources and step-by-step guidance for e-bike licensing and registration,” he said.

    He said the delay was due to the “extensive IT upgrades” required for new licensing and registration systems, educational resources and testing procedures, not to mention buying new materials such as “specialized license plate stickers,” that will have to be displayed on the registered bikes.

    “We are establishing a first-of-its-kind, comprehensive process for e-bikes,” he said.

    Ventnor installed this electronic sign on Atlantic Avenue to educate people about the state’s new e-bike law. Pennsylvanians will not be required to register their e-bikes while in New Jersey, the state says.

    Connolly said there is one category of e-bikes that will not require insurance, though they will still require registration: the lowest speed e-bikes.

    “These are the low-speed e-bikes with a motor that provide pedal assist only when the rider is pedaling and cease to provide assistance when the e-bike reaches 20 mph,” he said.

    So what if you’re visiting the Shore and bring an e-bike?

    Connolly said: “E-bike registration through the New Jersey MVC is only available to New Jersey residents.” Meaning, Pennsylvanians can bring their bikes and use them without registering them.

    But bicycle advocates say the law is confusing, because it also states that any bike must display a sticker showing that it is registered.

    While the law was prompted by a series of crashes, and particularly by the ubiquitous use by teenagers, it has been seniors that have taken to the e-bikes and urged towns to let them ride on their boardwalks.

    Annamarie, 70, and Mike Carr, 71, of Ventnor are best known for the Jagielky’s candy shops they own, but it’s e-bikes that have become their passion.

    Loading their bikes back onto their truck in Ocean City, where they began and ended a bike ride around various bridges, Mike Carr said he’d be sure to wear a helmet, because he believes that will be the thing that officers will focus in on in the beginning.

    Annamarie said, “Sure we’re upset,” about not being able to ride on Ventnor’s boardwalk, but they recognize the risks from people going too fast, particularly on electric scooters.

    E-bikes have allowed the couple to go on numerous bike rides a week, for upward of 30 or more miles. They’d never do that on a regular bike.

    “We parked here, we went the whole length of the boardwalk, we went down to 29th Street, we went back to Haven Avenue, came back and went over the bridge to go see the birds,” Mike said, describing the couple’s route that day.

    With the e-bikes, they don’t have to worry about the wind, he said. The couple will typically go 13 miles an hour.

    They are hooked on the freedom, distance, and exhilaration that e-bikes have given them, even as they passed 70. They ride all over the bridges of the barrier islands.

    Mike’s got some of his regular routes timed so that he can get over the bridge without getting a red light and without automobile traffic catching him from behind. “When we’re going into Longport, you turn around, you look at the light. When it’s red, you have four minutes to get over. You hit the throttle and you go as fast as you can.”

    He said they’ll try to register the bicycles and comply with the law, once they’re able to:

    “I’ll have to wear a helmet because I’m guessing they’ll look for the guys with no helmet, pull them over.”

    E-bike riders can sign up for direct updates from MVC here.

  • At its Juneteenth celebration, Philly’s African American Museum unveiled exhibit on the woman who escaped slavery at the President’s House

    At its Juneteenth celebration, Philly’s African American Museum unveiled exhibit on the woman who escaped slavery at the President’s House

    The line to enter Philadelphia’s African American Museum stretched a full block up Arch Street on Juneteenth Friday morning and never let up all day — not through performances by the West Powelton Steppers and not even when Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick took the stage.

    History, whether from these hip-hop legends or the Black ancestors summoned by the crowd during the ritual pouring of libations, was all around.

    Tahirah Barnett, of Southwest Philadelphia, with Order of Eastern Stars Prince Hall Adopted Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, (Center right) raises her finger in the air with fellow crowd members as Mayor Cherelle L. Parker speaks at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    “It’s important for me to be out and show my kids how we connect to our ancestors, how we connect to the present as well, and to be with community,” said Velena Flores, 47, an administrator at Jefferson Hospital. “My grandmothers, they all passed away. My father passed away, my uncles. So all the ancestors are gone.”

    Walene White of Northeast Philadelphia came with her aunt, Tiffany White, and her 13-year-old daughter and niece. As she waited to enter the museum, she reveled in the energy of the day.

    “We’re just breaking down Black history, breaking down the day of Juneteenth — the significance— and letting them come and see and enjoy the environment,” White said.

    The Marian Anderson Scholar Artists and Choral Ensemble performing at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    Inside the museum, Ronald Holmes, 66, of Oxford Circle wore his Josh Gibson No. 20 jersey and Homestead Grays cap, honoring the great Negro Leagues catcher.

    On the first floor, Holmes encountered a new exhibit on Ona Judge, the young woman enslaved by George and Martha Washington who escaped the presidential mansion in Philadelphia on May 21, 1796. She later settled in Portsmouth, N.H.

    Shirley Taylor, 65, and Ronald Holmes, 66, of Oxford Circle, inside the African American Museum of Philadelphia on Juneteenth, 2026.

    A few blocks away, at the site of the President’s House, controversy over how that history is presented continued. A federal appeals court ruling issued Thursday said the Trump administration can install its own slavery exhibits over the objections of the city of Philadelphia.

    Inside the AAMP, though, Judge’s story was on full display. Created in collaboration with the Ona Judge Coalition, the exhibit includes video featuring some of the panels that the Trump administration fought to remove.

    “Why would they fight so hard for that?” Holmes said. “And it’s our money they use to fight to take these things down, think about that, too. It’s mind boggling. But that tells you, the struggle is not over. We celebrate where we got to right now, but you know it’s not that final celebration.”

    Mayor Cherelle L. Parker attending the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    Founded in 1976 during the nation’s Bicentennial, the African American Museum in Philadelphia was the first institution funded and built by a major municipality to preserve, interpret, and exhibit the heritage of African American history and culture.

    The Juneteenth Jubilee kicks off the 16-day Wawa Welcome America festival, which culminates in the city’s celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

    The Juneteenth holiday, which former President Biden made a federal holiday in 2021, celebrates the day in 1865 when a Union general arrived in Galveston, Texas, and informed enslaved African Americans that the Civil War had ended and they were free — more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation.

    Aquil Dantzler, 26, of West Philadelphia, Pa., Singer and Song writer, poses for a portrait at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, attending the block party, said the museum played a “super huge role” in preserving the city’s history and that she remains committed to raising enough money to move the museum to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. There’s currently $50 million set aside for that move, she said.

    Slick Rick performing at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    After posing for photos with 6-year-old Salani Williams, the Little Miss Black America Ambassador, Parker she said the city would continue the legal fight to determine what is displayed at the President’s House site.

    “We do need to think about what it looks like telling the true story of the birthplace of our nation,” she said.

    Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro stopped by the museum in the afternoon and, after touring its exhibits, told reporters he would coordinate with Parker on the city’s response to the President’s House ruling.

    “Look, it is unfortunate the president continues to try and whitewash our history,” Shapiro said. “I am not going to back down in the face of these attacks coming from the federal government against understanding our freedom, even the painful parts of it.”

    The museum is also hosting “Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design,” a touring exhibition featuring more than 80 original designs from the two-time Academy Award-winning costume designer from films including Black Panther, Sinners, Do the Right Thing, Coming 2 America, and Malcolm X.

    Costumes from the movie Sinners from the exhibit “Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design” exhibition at the African American Museum of Phiadelphia.

    By afternoon, an exuberant, old-school block party had taken over the space behind the museum as thousands danced to performances by Doug E. Fresh, Slick Rick, Leah Jenea, and DJ Jazzy Jeff.

    “There’s only one Philly baby,” Doug E. Fresh told the crowd before recounting the history behind Juneteenth. “A long time ago, when slavery existed, it was supposed to be ended and they extended it 2 1/2 years more. It was a crime. It was disrespectful. But as usual, Black people survived. And thrived.” .”

    Aaron McCord, of Morrisville, Pa., is with his daughter Charli, 5, and son Bryson, 9, at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    There were local performers, artists, food trucks, children’s activities, and a vendor village of jewelry and crafts.

    Tyshia and Joseph Ingram displayed their “ABC Affirmations” flash cards from their business, Liberated Young, they started for their daughter.

    “The day historically, but also what we’re going through in our country right now, is really important,“ Tyshia said. ”One of our favorite affirmations is F is for free.”

    Ashley Jordan, the museum’s president and CEO, said she was excited about the museum’s role in the 250th celebration and its future.

    The Ona Judge exhibit and the President’s House dispute, she said, “show why Black museums matter.”

    Crowd Pleaserz Donnie “Nyce” Thompson, of North Philadelphia, his daughter Aniyah, 8, and son Jaden, 16, performing on the street for folks attending the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    “There was a time when the complete story wasn’t being told,” she said. “Entities like us matter so stories can be told unimpaired. It lives here as its own story, its own entity, complete with its own panels.”

    Marquez Efferson, of Northeast Philadelphia, Mlanjeni Magical Touring Theater, making balloons for folks attending the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    The museum’s exhibit “Audacious Freedom” has been expanded to include modern Philadelphia heroes, she said. “You don’t have to look far for history,” she said. “There’s Leon Sullivan, Cecil B. Moore, and Patti LaBelle.”

    Tiffany White and her niece, Walene White, in line outside the African American Museum of Philadelphia on Juneteenth 2026.

    Waiting in line, Tiffany White, 37, reflected on the holiday’s significance. “I can’t believe that it took so long to become a holiday,” she said. “And then people didn’t know, and two years later, they were still slaves? It’s crazy.”

    Alaina Gibbs, an innovation strategist at Main Line Health, attended with about 50 colleagues through the health system’s Belonging and Inclusion employee resource group.

    Many gather for this years Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    Gibbs and colleague Michelle Johnson, 47, said the visit was part of an effort to engage more with the community.

    “Today was the perfect place to do that,” Johnson said.

    Juneteenth is “really about how you look back at your roots, find your cultural connection, and it’s about observing the freedom that we all enjoy and celebrate,” Gibbs said. “It’s progress.”

    Noting the communication breakdown at the heart of the Juneteenth story, Gibbs added: “It brings the community back together to celebrate the freedom and the communication that’s needed to keep community connections.”

    Monty-G, of South Philadelphia, Pa., seen out in the crowd as Mayor Cherelle L. Parker speaks at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.

    “I like seeing the positivity and the togetherness right now in the city, this is the first time we’re coming together as a group from our organization,” Johnson said.

    Flores, meanwhile, said she was mindful of the news surrounding the President’s House and other national debates but focused on the day’s celebration.

    “I tell my kids we can get inundated with negative stuff every day,” she said. “The happiness and the love — that’s what I look for.”

    Kids playing a basketball game at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.
    Alexis Nixon, of Salt Lake City, Utah, is checking out GG Afrikan Elganz clothes during her visit to see her brother Daeshawn Nixon, of Brynmawr, Pa., at the Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.
    Kingkilliam Kato, 5, of Camden, N.J., is with his mom Annagjid Kato, for this years Juneteenth Block Party at the African American Museum in Philadelphia, Pa., on Friday, June 19, 2026.
  • Is it cheaper to vacation at the Outer Banks, the Jersey Shore, Dublin, or Mexico? We investigated.

    Is it cheaper to vacation at the Outer Banks, the Jersey Shore, Dublin, or Mexico? We investigated.

    People have been bragging about their trips to the Outer Banks since I moved to the Shore three decades ago. Quieter, cheaper, more laid back, more of a relaxing vacation than anything you’ll find in, say, Sea Isle.

    Last summer, with an increasingly unaffordable Jersey Shore spawning a subculture of people swearing by other places, we looked at the cost of vacationing in Hawaii and Paris, along with Margate. Deals could be had.

    Is it cheaper to spend a week in Paris, Hawaii or down the Shore? We investigated.

    This summer, as gas prices are on the rise, the appeal of an eight-hour drive to North Carolina might give even a priced-out Margatian pause.

    Is it worth the drive to get to Duck, N.C.? What about flying to Dublin? Has the “We’re going to Europe instead” crowd thinned out?

    We priced options for a family of four and targeted a week in July, the 11th to the 18th.

    Rental inventory at the Jersey Shore is rapidly depleting, said Duane Watlington, the CEO and founder of Vacation Rentals Jersey Shore LLC. As of April 1, Long Beach Island is 83% booked for the eight summer weeks, June 27-Aug. 22, he said.

    But Watlington said rental prices were looking better, with “Most listings … the same price or up to 10% lower for weekly rentals due to the soft market we had in 2025.”

    Everything is relative, of course. Available rentals for that week on LBI can range from a four-bedroom Harvey Cedars charmer at $11,000 to a cozy two-bedroom Beach Haven duplex available Friday to Friday for just $3,000.

    The real value, Watlington advised, is in September, with rentals as much as half the price of peak summer weeks, a warm ocean, and the joys of “locals summer.”

    Data from HomeToGo showed that Sea Isle City rentals ranged from $6,745 to a whopping $18,828, with an average of $9,389.10 for available properties during that peak July week.

    Bethany Beach, Del., ($5,537.59) and Duck, N.C., ($5,361.90) had similar average weekly rentals. Ocean City averaged $6,321.53 for that week, according to Berger Realty data.

    Watlington said the median price on LBI for a July or August rental is $7,000 per week, with a range of $1,000 to (yikes) $55,000 week.

    The sun peeks out from under the clouds as it sets in Mazatlan, Mexico (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

    Looking abroad

    Paul Ferdinand of Rainbow Voyages in Philadelphia found little available in Dublin during July, “regardless of price.”

    He advised switching to early August, and came up with a very competitive trip, detailed below.

    Mezgaron James of YouBeEverywhere Travel suggested Mazatlán, Mexico, which she said combines the charm of a Jersey Shore boardwalk with the luxury of a hotel on Mexico’s Pacific coast.

    A Philly travel agent was stuck in the Middle East when war broke out. Here’s how she and a dozen friends got home.

    In the end, results were undeniable: The total cost of the more adventurous destinations like Ireland or Mexico was comparable, or even less, than a typical weekly rental at the Shore.

    Here are the details.

    In this Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2010 photo, wild horses are seen in Corolla, N.C. A boom in vacation homes in the last 25 years in this remote place has seen the descendants of colonial Spanish mustangs confined to a 7,500-acre sanctuary on the northern tip of North Carolina’s Outer Banks, and now the herd itself may shrink along with its habitat. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

    Outer Banks: Linens included

    Outer Banks rentals trend toward the larger side, so the trick might be to vacation with that other family whose kids like your kids.

    Here’s one property, known as the Beached Buffalo, five houses from the beach in the town of Corolla (accent on the first syllable, not like the car), that rents for a prime week in July for $5,597.

    Myles Wood, of Shoreline OBX, said his company includes a friendly $250 credit for beach gear rental during your stay.

    Jersey Shore veteran renters, used to having to (literally) bring their own sheets, find this extremely attractive.

    “One of the things we aim to do if someone comes down, everything’s taken care of,” Wood said.

    Rental prices have crept up a bit, he notes, but said those priced out of buying a beach house in New Jersey will be pleasantly surprised to see a lower bar of entry, like this Duck beach cottage listed at $650,000.

    Sample food: At Aqua, $34 gets you Chef Cory Bryant’s Shrimp and Grits, with smoked pork belly lardons, sun-dried tomatoes, and a creamy lobster sauce.

    Vibe: Personal space-y. Says Wood: “Our beaches are wide enough and plentiful enough. You get a slice of personal heaven.”

    What’s free? Beaches and parking, oh my.

    Drawbacks: No true boardwalk scene. Long, and increasingly expensive, drive for a week’s vacation.

    Drinkers and tourists visit the Temple Bar pub in the Temple Bar area of Dublin on September 15, 2024.

    Dublin: Emerald green mountains

    Paul Ferdinand of Philly’s Rainbow Voyages, who sent us on a glorious, if theoretical, trip to Hawaii last year as a Jersey Shore alternative, recommended Dublin in August..

    He said Americans will find Ireland “wallet-friendly,” and Dublin a perfect home base for, among other things, art, boutiques, pubs, and day trips.

    Get dispatches and advice from Down the Shore

    He found a “stylish one-bedroom apartment” for four at the Dublin City Center location of the Staycity chain that will rent for a week for $1,996. If it’s just for two, he recommends the Hoxton Hotel for its “tasteful decor and fawning service,” which will run about $2,029 mid-August, “a steal for that hotel group,” he said.

    Airfare round-trip from Philly on Aer Lingus Irish Airlines will run you around $929 per person, including a seat assignment, checked bag, and in-flight meal.

    Vibe: Sea Isle meets James Joyce. Cliffs!

    Sample food: Three-course menu at Vintage Kitchen in Dublin for 72 euros features the Skeaghanore duck with miso, sprouting broccoli, sweet potato, and samphire (sea beans).

    What’s free? At the Guinness Storehouse, take the basic tour where mom and dad get a free stout.

    Drawbacks: Peak Dublin Bay temps are about 59 degrees.

    Boardwalk near 6th Street, Ocean City, NJ.

    Ocean City: Nostalgia — for a price

    Brian Logue, of the Anchor Group in Ocean City, notes that Ocean City has had some record sale prices. But that hasn’t affected rental prices, he said. “The upside for tenants is that rental prices have not kept up with value.”

    He’s not sold on the North Carolina alternative.

    “From experience, I have clients who love the Outer Banks,” he said. “But unless you have your own plane, it’s eight hours in the car each way.”

    He thinks people may think they want an alternative to their ancestral Shore destinations, but in the end, they really don’t.

    “There’s not a boardwalk,” he said of the Outer Banks. “The things that make Ocean City ‘America’s Greatest Family Resort,’ it doesn’t exist there. It doesn’t have that nostalgic Jersey feel.”

    In Ocean City, five grand will get you a week in July at this three-bedroom, three-and-a-half bath Ocean City townhouse on Wesley Avenue.

    Vibe: America’s greatest family resort, not as many rides as there used to be, nostalgia.

    Sample food: Manco’s, Alex’s, Bakeria1010, Preps, Kohr Brothers.

    What’s free? Walk the boardwalk to your heart’s content, but each person will need a $35 seasonal beach tag ($30 before June 1).

    Drawbacks: You’ll have a lot of company everywhere you go.

    The island community of Brigantine features plenty of water activities.

    Brigantine: Linens extra

    Maria Sacco Handle, of the Shore House Team, said the snowy winter has spurred interest in Jersey Shore rentals. She said prices have stayed “fairly steady,” with some early booking incentives that will disappear as the season approaches.

    “Believe it or not, we love a snowy winter at the Jersey Shore — it reminds everyone how amazing a week at the beach will feel,“ she said. “My advice to anyone thinking about renting this summer: Don’t sit on the fence — the best weeks always go first.”

    A typical week in Brigantine in July comes out as about the same as the Outer Banks, minus the cost of driving and plus the cost of a beach tag ($15 per week per person).

    In a time-honored Jersey Shore tradition, you’ll have to bring your own bed linens or rent them (no Outer Banks-y credit included).

    A four-bedroom, two-bath charming blue rental house in Brigantine’s “A zone,” in the middle of the island, is listed for $5305, a bargain by current Jersey Shore standards.

    Sample food: Spicy tuna with Caribbean jerk seasoning at La Scala Beach House will run you $25.

    Vibe: With one way on and off, Brigantine is its own insular vibe. All-terrain vehicle holders can go tailgate at the cove.

    What’s free? Hmm. An early morning around the island bike ride, as always.

    What’s not? Linens! BYO.

    Perks: The Borgata is just a short hop over the bridge, and you can visit some stranded marine mammals at the Marine Mammal Stranding Center. Also, golf.

    Frolicking in a beachside seawater pool in Mazatlán, Mexico.

    Mazatlán, Mexico: 13-mile boardwalk

    “This was the first thing that popped in my mind,” said Philadelphia travel agent Mezgaron James.

    She’s referring to Mazlatán, Mexico, a resort town on Mexico’s Pacific coast. “A lot of people don’t know they have the longest boardwalk in the world, a 13-mile boardwalk. It’s a place that’s untouched.”

    James priced out seven nights in our target week, July 11 to 18, at Costa de Oro Beach Hotel, including round-trip tickets on American Airlines from Philadelphia for … $4,000.

    “It’s family-friendly,” James said. “There’s a lot of things to do. It’s still lively like the Jersey Shore, but you’ll see a nice mix of people, fishermen hauling the morning’s catch, people bicycling and jogging, catch a coffee and pastry. There’s zip-lining. There’s open air taxis.”

    The hotel provides direct access to the beach at no extra cost.

    “It’s actually a four-star hotel with a pool right by the beach,” she said.

    Sample food: I’m ordering the Zarandeado fish, a whole grilled fish available at multiple places.

    Vibe: The 13-mile boardwalk will meet all your Jersey needs.

    What’s free? Beaches.

    Drawbacks: Check with the U.S. Department of State’s travel advisory to see about impacts from any nearby (but not in tourist areas, typically) cartel violence.

    Inquirer staff writer Chris A. Williams contributed to this article.

  • Police rescued seal pup from middle of a snowy Jersey Shore road

    Police rescued seal pup from middle of a snowy Jersey Shore road

    Why did the little seal pup leave the ocean, wander up the beach path, go one block up Middlesex Avenue, then cross three lanes of Long Beach Boulevard in Harvey Cedars?

    Who knows?

    Maybe it was just the long slick surface of post-storm snow and ice that urged the seal to keep going until a sunny spot in this beach town’s southbound slow lane invited her to stretch out.

    Luckily for the gray seal pup, a landscaper on his way to plowing snow did not mistake her for a chunk of snow, and pulled over to block the roadway and help, Harvey Cedars Police Chief Robert Burnaford said Tuesday.

    “At approximately 7 o’clock, an innocent bystander was driving by and saw the seal laying in the Boulevard,” Burnaford said by telephone.

    “They called us, and the officers confirmed the seal was kind of just relaxing in the slow lane of Long Beach Boulevard,” the chief said. “Literally it crossed over three lanes of traffic to where it was finally hanging out.”

    A member of Public Works wrapped the seal in his jacket and moved her to Middlesex Avenue, out of traffic, Burnaford said. The Marine Mammal Stranding Center responded and carried her to their truck, and then to their hospital in Brigantine.

    A gray seal pup wandered off the beach in Harvey Cedars and ended up in the middle of Long Beach Boulevard on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026, a day after a snowstorm dropped a foot and a half of snow on the island.

    The Stranding Center put it this way on Instagram: “POV: When your nap shuts down a whole street.”

    The center said in social media statements that the pup had no injuries but was in “thin overall body condition.”

    “She is currently resting comfortably in Pen 2 of the Pool House,” the center wrote.

    Seal beachings are not uncommon at the Jersey Shore, but the animals rarely end up off the beach. Burnaford said that a seal once ended up in the driveway of an oceanfront home.

    “They beach themselves to sun themselves,“ Burnaford said. ”Maybe she was sick and tired of the weather, trying to find another place.”

    A gray seal pup wandered off the beach in Harvey Cedars and ended up in the middle of Long Beach Boulevard on Tuesday, a day after a snowstorm dropped a foot and a half of snow on the island.

    Official totals put towns on Long Beach Island at around 18 inches of snow.

    “It was icy and maybe [the seal] was able to slip and slide easier,” the chief said.

    The Marine Mammal Center added: “Another big reason to use caution when driving through a shore town after a snowstorm.”

  • Murray Wolf, Avalon’s legendary beach patrol captain, has died at 87

    Murray Wolf, Avalon’s legendary beach patrol captain, has died at 87

    Murray Wolf, 87, of Avalon, the legendary no-nonsense beach patrol captain whose half-century reign inspired and guided generations of lifeguards, while aggravating some famous and not-so-famous beachgoers along the way, died Monday, Feb. 16, at AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Atlantic City following a stroke.

    “He was probably the most loyal person I’ve known in my life,” said his wife of 43 years, Vicki Wolf. “Anybody who came into contact with him, he made them a better person, no question about it.”

    Murray Wolf was captain of the Avalon Beach Patrol for more than a half-century and spent 65 years on the patrol. “He had the highest of standards,” said John Glomb, who served under him for decades.

    “He had the highest of standards,“ said John Glomb, who served under him for decades. ”When the conditions were not favorable, he drove around the beaches and made sure the guards were on top of their bathers, making sure that nobody was in harm’s way.

    “He had a record where in his 65 years, there was never a drowning. That’s a record that is absolutely spectacular.”

    Not everyone appreciated Mr. Wolf’s brand of beach enforcement. In 1999, he famously tangled with then-WIP sports radio personality Angelo Cataldi over a beach tag, showing him no mercy.

    Cataldi endlessly railed about it on air, and never truly got over it, saying in 2016, as Wolf entered his 61st year on the beach patrol, “I do harbor ill will toward Murray Wolf, and I always will.” Cataldi did not respond to an email following news of Mr. Wolf’s passing.

    Mr. Wolf brushed off the Cataldi encounter like he did most of his encounters on the beach, a place he patrolled with military precision, complete with nightly wave-offs, stand by stand, from his jeep. Rules were meant to be enforced. But he could laugh about it, even if Cataldi couldn’t.

    There was also Frank Wilson, formerly of Chester County, who sued Avalon in 2001 and won $175,000, driven arguably mad after being repeatedly whistled out of the water when he tried to swim after 5 p.m. “We have the right to protect our bathers,” Mr. Wolf said at the time.

    Murray Wolf, shown here rowing with his son Tyler during his final year on the Avalon Beach Patrol.

    Within the ranks of his family — wife Vicki; sons Matthew, Erich, and Tyler; and his 10-year-old black Lab, Ruger — Mr. Wolf’s loyalty, kindness, and appreciation for Avalon’s simple pleasures were deeply admired.

    The same was true for the ranks of lifeguards, wrestling teams, his Pleasantville school district physical education classes, and the multiple championship South Jersey beach patrol teams he coached in Avalon with the utmost of pride.

    Mr. Wolf rode his bike around Avalon almost to the end and walked Ruger in the deepest of snows.

    Murray Wolf, longtime captain of the Avalon Beach Patrol, taking a break from preseason preparations at age 77 to watch his son coach his baseball team.

    “He was happy to sit home and watch the football game, sit on the couch, yell at the dog for running in and out,” his wife said. “He loved his Avalon. There wasn’t one time we rode over the bridge into town when he didn’t say, ‘Oh, that was the best decision I made, moving to Avalon.’ He was just a content man, satisfied.”

    In his 61st season, Avalon’s Capt. Murray Wolf still rules the beach

    His blunt style could rub some the wrong way. Vicki Wolf, who met her husband at the Princeton, Avalon’s iconic bar, spotting at first his muscular arms, she recalled, said she always knew when someone in town had had an uncomfortable encounter with Mr. Wolf when they would veer away from her in the supermarket.

    He led his patrols through a pandemic, hurricanes, and new technology: He vowed to fire any guard caught with a cell phone on the stand. “It says Lifeguard on Duty,” he said in 2016. “It’s a duty.”

    “There was nothing phony about him,” Vicki Wolf said. “He was never one to take low blows about him. Not everybody liked him. He had enemies, but they respected him.”

    “He took a lot of pride in Avalon doing well — that was in everything Murray did,” Glomb said. “He ran a tight ship. He ran a tight beach.”

    In the offseason, Mr. Wolf coached championship wrestling teams and was a physical education teacher in the Pleasantville school district for 50 years. His son Matt took his place as Avalon beach patrol captain in 2021 and also coaches wrestling in Middle Township.

    Murray Wolf, longtime captain of the Avalon Beach Patrol pictured here in 2016 with some of his lifeguards at the patrol’s headquarters. ED HILLE / Staff Photographer

    Matt Wolf said his father suffered a stroke on Nov. 11 and was hospitalized until his Feb. 16 death. It seemed to so many that he might live forever, given his lifelong physical fitness and vigor, the devotion to his routines of bike riding and dog walking through town.

    “I think people saw him as very serious when he was in that public spotlight,” Matt Wolf said. “He had a great sense of humor. He didn’t need to be out with a bunch of people. He was happy to be home with his family.”

    Capt Murray Wolf in his 61st year on the beach

    The generations of guards who worked under him paid tribute to Capt. Wolf following his passing. “It was an honor to work with The Captain — there’s nobody quite like him,” Ryan Finnegan wrote on Facebook. “He taught his guards countless life lessons over the decades. Thousands of lives were saved because of him. The beaches in heaven are much safer now! Rest easy Capt.”

    Murray Wolf was captain of the Avalon Beach Patrol for more than a half-century and spent 65 years on the patrol. “He had the highest of standards,” said John Glomb, who served under him for decades.

    George Murray Wolf III was born Aug. 16, 1938, in Philadelphia to Elizabeth Gerhard and George Murray Wolf II and was raised on the Main Line. He and his family vacationed in Avalon from the time he was a child.

    He graduated from Conestoga High School and, after briefly working in a steel mill, Mr. Wolf attended Western State College in Gunnison, Colo., where he competed in wrestling and won a team national championship. He graduated with a degree in physical education and later earned a master’s in educational administration from Rider University.

    Mr. Wolf spent more than 50 years teaching physical education in Pleasantville. As head wrestling coach, he led the Pleasantville High School Greyhounds to the 1974 District 32 Championship. “He loved his job working with students and his colleagues at Leeds Avenue School,” his son wrote in the family obituary.

    Avalon Beach patrol chief Matt Wolf (center) with his parents Vicki and Murray at the 2024 South Jersey Lifeguard Championships in Brigantine.

    Mr. Wolf served as captain of the Avalon Beach patrol from 1967 to 2020 and served a total of 65 years on the patrol. His teams, competing in the storied lifeguard races every summer, won nine South Jersey Lifeguard Championships, and Mr. Wolf had the joy of coaching his sons in winning boats.

    Mr. Wolf and his wife were fixtures at their sons’ football, wrestling, baseball, and track and field games and meets, when their sons were competitors and, later, when their sons became coaches themselves.

    Ventnor’s retired beach patrol chief Stan Bergman, himself a legendary chief and coach, has called Mr. Wolf “a warrior.” “He’s battle-tested,” Bergman said in a 2016 interview. “They have a tough beach.”

    Murray Wolf was captain of the Avalon Beach Patrol for more than a half-century and spent 65 years on the patrol. “He had the highest of standards,” said John Glomb, who served under him for decades. He took great pride in his teams winning the South Jersey Lifeguard Championships.

    “He was a very staunch competitor,” said Ed Schneider, chief of Wildwood’s beach patrol and also a wrestling coach. “I was always nervous going up against his teams. He commanded a presence around him. He made people push themselves to be the best.”

    After Matt Wolf took his place as captain of the patrol, he would include his dad as much as possible, taking him in the jeep along the beach. Murray Wolf always attended the lifeguard races, talking to the guards about the David J. Kerr Memorial Races, a competition he began in 1984 to honor a guard who died of cancer.

    In his final weeks, when the family came into his hospital room, his wife said, he would look for his boys, and “always blow a kiss and say, ‘I love you.’”

    “Every night I would get home, the dog would go sit on the deck and look down the street,” Vicki Wolf said. “It broke my heart. He was looking for Murray.”

    In addition to his wife and their three sons, he is survived by another son, George Murray IV, and a sister. A son, Michael, died earlier.

    Services will be at noon Friday, Feb. 27, at our Savior Lutheran Church, 9212 Third Ave., Stone Harbor, N.J. Visitation will be 10 to 11:45 a.m.

    Donations may be made to the Middle Township Wrestling Program or the Helen L. Diller Vacation Home for Blind Children.

    Murray Wolf was devoted to his three black labs, including Ruger.