Indoor Dining Reopening 'Too Late' For Ocean City Boardwalk

OCEAN CITY, NJ — For local seasonal businesses, Governor Phil Murphy's decision to resume indoor dining Friday is "too little, too late," according to one Ocean City business leader.

Indoor dining can soon continue with a limited capacity, nearly six months after Murphy prohibited it to slow the spread of the coronavirus. But that will come right before Labor Day weekend, toward the end of the Jersey Shore's peak season.

Related article: Gov. Murphy: NJ Indoor Dining To Resume Amid Coronavirus Crisis

"Governor Murphy’s announcement is a slap in the face to our members that were devastated all summer by his one-size-fits-all solution to restaurants," said Wesley Kazmarck, president of the Ocean City Boardwalk Merchants Association. "Allowing boardwalk restaurants — which are largely open to the outside — to open at the same capacity as fully indoor restaurants the day before our summer season end is a cruel joke."

Kazmarck believes many of the indoor-dining restrictions didn't make sense for Ocean City boardwalk businesses, which try to quickly turn over customers.

The business owners' concerns with the state's reopening timeline aren't new. The organization developed a petition in June for Murphy to allow their businesses to open with safeguards. The petition has 3,025 signatures. Amusement parks, water parks and arcades, which attract customers to the rest of the boardwalk businesses, weren't allowed to reopen until July 2.

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Murphy originally announced that limited indoor dining could resume the same date, but he canceled the plan June 29. The OCBMA called Murphy's decision "potentially devastating."

"There is a limited window for Boardwalk restaurants and their employees to earn a living each summer, and Governor Murphy just slammed it shut," the organization said. Read more: Ocean City Boardwalk Assoc. Decries Gov. Murphy's Dining Reversal

Murphy announced June 26 that he planned to allow schools to reopen for fall. Kazmarck believes it would've made sense to allow for more indoor activity before then.

"You would think you wouldn’t want our children to be the guinea pigs to see how this goes," he said. "You could’ve opened indoor dining with specified rules and maybe restrictions."

This September could prove more fruitful for boardwalk merchants than in past years, Kazmarck said. But the month isn't when they make their living. In a typical year, it gives businesses a chance to make some money before winter, he says.

"It’s not saving the day by any stretch of the imagination for these guys," Kazmarck said. "It’s incredibly frustrating."

Read more: NJ Coronavirus, Reopen Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

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