Memorial Day is upon us; and I want everyone to ignore the clouds and rain you’re seeing this morning, because the prediction is 82 degrees and sunny from now through the summer!
More than ever, Sea Isle City is ready for a great season. We’ve all endured over two years of hardships none of us could ever have imagined; and together as a community, a state, and a country, we have shown toughness and resiliency, and understanding for each other. No doubt, obstacles remain, as there will always be, but there is also no doubt that we will prevail by sticking to our values and working together.
I’m happy to report that, following the early May nor’easter we suffered, our Public Works Department has done an outstanding job preparing our beaches for the coming holiday weekend. All beach accesses will be in good shape, and either hard packed gravel or mobi-mats will be in place for this coming weekend at designated handicapped accessible locations; and all mats will be placed throughout the city by mid-June.
I want to remind everyone to please swim only at guarded beaches.
For the coming weekend, our guarded beaches will be at 40th, 51st, 59th, mid-block between 64th and 65th, 75th, and mid-block between 86th and 87th Streets. Through the month of June, the number of guarded beaches will increase to nearly 30 locations by June 25th.
On today’s City Council agenda is authorization for award of a beach concession for the sale of iced coffee. This is the second year for this concession, and apparently, this is proving to be a popular item, as the successful bidder will be paying over $45,000 over the next two summers for the right to sell iced coffee on our beaches.
Also on the agenda today is a resolution authorizing advertisement of bids for asbestos abatement of the former school at 4501 Park Road. This is the first step in the ultimate demolition of that building, in advance of construction of the new community center, for which council authorized construction funding earlier this year. The City remains on track to go out to bid for construction of the project this coming summer.
As always, please, remember – we are one Sea Isle City and together we’ll be stronger than ever.
Mayor Leonard C. Desiderio