Hurricane Sandy

Post-Sandy Tourism and the Shore's Perception Problem

Beach communities are inviting visitors back this summer, but even as they continue to rebuild they face misconceptions about lingering destruction.

It’s an enduring image of Hurricane Sandy’s destruction of the Jersey Shore and its coastal communities. The Jet Star roller coaster, rising out of its saltwater foundation, is a representation of the sheer force of nature, one seen in publications around the world in the immediate aftermath of the storm. Every day the ride has spent in the Atlantic Ocean since is a reality of just how long recovery can actually take. Eventually it will be removed, and likely soon, but what it represents, like every tattered boardwalk, every crushed house, and flooded business, is likely to linger much longer. And it's what the Jersey Shore, and the people trying to maintain its tourism appeal, are fighting against. As New Jersey’s beach towns ready …

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VIDEO: Lt. Gov. Kicks Off Marketing Campaign for the Jersey Shore

She also says state working with federal officials to equitably disburse block grants to residents.

  Come to the Jersey Shore for Valentine's Day and then come back in the spring, summer and fall. That was the message from Acting Gov. Kim Guadagno who kicked off the state's "Show your Love for the Jersey Shore" campaign on Monday afternoon at Jenkinson's Aquarium on the boardwalk in Ocean County's Point Pleasant. "Come to the Jersey Shore for Valentine's Day, we're open for business," Guadagno said, standing at a podium just across from the penguins. She said it's crucial that the private-public marketing campaign effort, which is being done in conjunction with other marketing campaigns, gets the message out so the state's $38 billion tourism industry can again be robust. "The Jersey Shore is a large piece of that industry," she said. "…

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