Get ‘The Wrap,’ our take on the news of the week,in your inbox every Monday.Sign up at https://bit.ly/HeraldWrap. Learn more about J. Byrne Insurance.
April 19-25:
Good Week for Covid Metrics
The health metrics continue to improve, helping fuel optimism for summer.
This past week ended with 162 new cases, or an average of 23 per day, down from 26 per day last week. The number of active cases did not increase and remains at 268.
The county reported no new Covid fatalities. The last resident fatality was April 7.
The number of residents fully vaccinated increased by almost 8% this week, moving from 34,404 to 37,046.
In other Covid news, the county announced its vaccination site is moving from the Avalon Community Center to Lower Cape May Regional High School’s field house May 17.
Budgets Unsettled
The $1.9 trillion federal American Rescue Plan contains funds to help municipalities deal with Covid expenses and lost revenue due to the pandemic; however, rules on how the funds may be used are still not final, causing many county towns to hold off on adopting 2021 budgets.
Middle Township and Ocean City have not formally introduced their annual budgets.
This week, Cape May joined North Wildwood and other county municipalities, backing away from adopting introduced budgets. The advice from municipal auditors is to wait until the rules for the new funds are known.
Summer Approaches
As Memorial Day weekend nears, several county towns are resolving issues related to the season.
Cape May clarified its ban on open container drinking along the city’s Promenade. Lower Township said its ordinance banning smoking marijuana on municipal beaches does not apply to privately owned beaches, like those in Diamond Beach.
To tax or not to tax will be the question before Cape May City Council, at its next meeting. Local taxpayers are urging the city to increase the municipal occupancy tax, as well as add it to short-term rentals booked through apps like Airbnb.
Business chambers are busy keeping the pressure on the federal government to fast-track the J-1 visa process to meet the goals for summer workers in what is expected to be a busy season.
Meanwhile, a Cape May County Chamber webinar provided information on how employers may be able to accommodate drug-free workplaces under the new cannabis laws.
As Ocean City readies its beaches for the summer, the city must also deal with anonymous allegations of sex abuse, involving the beach patrol.
Busy Week for Law Enforcement
A Middle Township officer responding to a domestic disturbance was assaulted, resulting in an arrest. Meanwhile, a 52-year-old municipal resident jailed on sex offenses, in Pennsylvania, had his bail increased.
Ocean City cannot get its special police officers from the Cape May County Police Academy too soon, given problems with groups of young teenagers “causing problems.”
Attorney General Gurbir Grewal issued guidance on appropriate interactions between law enforcement and the news media during protest events.
Grewal also issued a directive waving mandatory minimum prison terms for nonviolent drug offenders.
This week, as well, Grewal’s boss, Gov. Phil Murphy, signed a series of bills directing more resources and training for handling sexual assault cases.
And…
The Cape May County Zoo is introducing three new species and two new habitats in time for summer visitors.
The third annual Teen Arts Festival was a virtual event this year after being canceled in 2020. With about 500 students and teachers participating, the virtual event was a success.
The state released its first Climate Change Resiliency Strategy for public review and comment. Two public webinars are scheduled for May. A Coastal Resilience Plan is contained in the strategy.
Chief Justice Stuart Rabner is considering a report with a series of recommendations on landlord-tenant matters. The report is an effort to prepare for the impending flood of cases the state courts will be asked to hear once a statewide moratorium on evictions is lifted.
Spout Off of the Week
Sea Isle City - The promised Town Hall meeting on the proposed community center devolved into a pre-recorded video instead. The whammy came at the end of the video when a $20 million price tag was slipped in. When the center was to have a pool, the cost was to be $17 million and the town council notified all home owners of the annual tax increase to build and maintain the pool. Now, without the pool, the price has grown to $20 million and no mention of how much our taxes will go up for this Taj Mahal of a project and no mechanism like a non-binding vote which sank the pool idea, for taxpayer input.
According to Covid Act Now, the county infection rate remains at or below 1.0, meaninga slower spread. The positive test rate is 5.7%, which is below the 7.6% rate for the state, as a whole.
There are still no active cases at long-term care facilities.
Wildwood – So Liberals here on spout off, here's a REAL question for you.
Do you think it's appropriate for BLM to call for "Burning down the city" and "Black Vigilantes" because…
