New Jersey

Former manager at Chickie's & Pete's files whistleblower suit

newsworks@whyy.org (Emma Jacobs, @ecjacobs) — Fri, 24 May 2013 20:07:30 GMT

Restaurant workers often complain that their employers skim some money off of the tips they make. A fired former manager at Chickie's & Pete's alleges the sports bar chain did just that -- and says it cost her job.

Gas prices up slightly for holiday weekend

newsworks@whyy.org (Phil Gregory) — Fri, 24 May 2013 19:16:05 GMT

Gasoline prices have edged higher recently, but an industry analyst expects they'll hold steady for a while.

NewsWorks Tonight to broadcast live from Ocean City's boardwalk

newsworks@whyy.org (NewsWorks Staff) — Fri, 24 May 2013 16:56:59 GMT

Kick off the beach season with NewsWorks Tonight as we broadcast live from Ocean City, N.J.! In this popular program's first-ever remote broadcast, host Dave Heller and our team of knowledgeable reporters will highlight the Jersey Shore's rebuilding efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. The program will also touch on other issues relevant to the Philadelphia region.

EVENT DETAILS:

NewsWorks Tonight: Live Broadcast from Ocean City, N.J.

Friday, May 24, 2013, 6 to 6:30 p.m.
Ocean City Music Pier
801 Boardwalk, Ocean City, New Jersey

On tonight's show:

WHYY's Tracey Samuelson reports on why insurance checks have been so slow in coming.

WHYY's Tom MacDonald talks to Shore merchants about their struggle to get ready for the season, and their hopes and fears.

We interview Ocean City's mayor, Jay Gillian and the founder of Jersey Shore Hurricane News, Justin Auciello.

Shai Ben-Yaacov, roams the boardwalks, talking to folks about their feelings about the first Shore season after Sandy.

Can't make it out to enjoy the broadcast in person? Tune in to WHYY-FM (90.9), WNJZ-FM (90.3, Cape May Court House), WNJM-FM (89.9, Manahawkin), WNJN-FM (89.7, Atlantic City), WNJB-FM (89.3, Bridgeton) and WNJS-FM (88.1, Berlin). Or stream the program live.

NY, NJ transit agencies to receive $3.7B in aid

newsworks@whyy.org (Associated Press) — Fri, 24 May 2013 16:00:32 GMT

Four major transit agencies in New York and New Jersey will receive $3.7 billion in federal aid to repair damage from Superstorm Sandy. The money also will help protect the region's trains, buses and subways from future storms.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced the additional disaster relief funds on Thursday.

Surfers feel a wave of concern building over N.J. beach project

newsworks@whyy.org (Phil Gregory) — Fri, 24 May 2013 15:48:10 GMT

Beaches from Sea Bright to Manasquan are being restored at a coast of $100 million, the biggest beach restoration project in the nation right now. The goal is to protect roads, home and infrastructure from storm damage.

But not everybody is happy with the project.

Which New Jersey beaches are open for Memorial Day?

newsworks@whyy.org (Tracey Samuelson @TDSamuelson) — Fri, 24 May 2013 14:00:39 GMT

This list is a starting point and a partial guide to what's open, what’s not and what to expect at the Jersey Shore this summer. Please add to it by posting information in the comments.

Ocean City, N.J. businesses regroup, reopen, reach out

newsworks@whyy.org (Tom MacDonald @tmacdonaldWHYY) — Fri, 24 May 2013 14:00:00 GMT

For businesses in Ocean City and other Jersey Shore towns that were spared the worst of Superstorm Sandy, the challenge leading into the summer season has been more than renovating or rebuilding.

Island Beach State Park species try to rebound post-Sandy

newsworks@whyy.org (Mary Cummings-Jordan @mcjwhyy) — Fri, 24 May 2013 13:00:52 GMT

While the impact of Superstorm Sandy on human life has been glaringly visible, less apparent is how the storm has affected wildlife. Researchers and college students have been walking through Island Beach State Park looking for the Northern Diamondback Terrapin. It's considered the "canary in a coalmine" for salt marshes.

Barrier to post-Sandy recovery: haggling with insurance companies

newsworks@whyy.org (Tracey Samuelson @tdsamuelson) — Fri, 24 May 2013 12:00:10 GMT

Leading up to Memorial Day weekend, we heard a great deal from N.J. Gov. Chris Christie about how the Shore is open for businesses.

"This is the first symbol of us of making sure this week that everyone across the state, across the region, and across America knows that the Jersey shore is open for the summer and ready to receive our customers," Christie said at a ceremony for the reopening of a boardwalk in Lavallette.

And while it's true much of New Jersey's coast is ready to welcome back the tourists, this idea that the Shore is "open" can irk some homeowners who are still waiting for aid money or insurance checks.

Ocean City's public relations man woos tourists with wacky events

newsworks@whyy.org (Peter Crimmins @petercrimmins) — Thu, 23 May 2013 20:00:00 GMT

For 40 years, New Jersey's Ocean City has been positioning itself as a "mecca of wacky," with French fry sculpture contests, a hermit crab beauty pageant, a Pamper scamper race (toddlers crawling out from the center of a parachute cloth), a wet T-shirt contest (participants try to throw a wadded wet T-shirt the farthest), and a TastyKake sculpture contest wherein contestants "carve" a figure out of a snack cake -- one nibble at a time.

And then there was that time 500 beagles paraded down Central Avenue.