Governor Chris Christie has decided not to up taxes for those who live in New Jersey and commute to work in Pennsylvania, presumably after his floated plan to do just that went down like a lead balloon in South Jersey. The Asbury Park Press reports that Christie scrapped his plans to tear up his state’s tax treaty with Pennsylvania because he has found the money he needed somewhere else…. wait for it… from cutting workers’ health benefits.
Meanwhile, Philly.com says that Philadelphia developer Bart Blatstein – one of the latest crop of investors hoping to save Atlantic City from itself – has decided to lease The Playground… If you’ve forgotten what The Playground is, that attests to its success. It’s the re-branded Pier One that houses luxury stores and extends into the Atlantic ocean. It’s been struggling for a while, even before Blatstein’s Tower Investments snapped it up for a bargain $2.5 million last year.
In the Pine Barrens the wind has died down, helping firefighters tackling the forest fires that burned 200 acres on Tuesday. You can read more via NJ.com and watch some video at SNJToday.
We took a stroll down to Pauline’s Prairie – the mother ship of Atlantic City’s vacant lots – to check out what seems to be some action on Boraie Development’s plan for 250 rental units on the site. You can read that story here.
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Here’s the rest of today’s headlines:
State Frees Up $67M For Open Space, Recreation Projects–For the first time in two years, the state is looking to award up to $67.4 million in funding to municipalities, counties, and nonprofit groups to acquire open space and develop recreational projects. The state Department of Environmental Protection is accepting applications for the first chunk of money to be doled by a new stable source of funding approved by voters back in the fall of 2014 for Green Acres projects. www.njspotlight.com
Northfield Police Arrest One Man In Sunday Home Invasion, Searching For Second–A Northfield man was arrested and charged with criminal restraint, burglary, assault, terroristic threats and conspiracy after he broke in to a home and assaulted a woman, police said. Press of Atlantic City
Profits At Atlantic City Casinos Driven Down By Trump Taj Mahal Strike–The strike that preceded the shutdown of the Trump Taj Mahal casino helped drag Atlantic City's casino industry to a 10.6 percent decline in gross operating profits in the third quarter of this year. Even though the Taj Mahal was the only casino to post a loss for the quarter, it was big enough to bring the city as a whole into negative territory. NJ.com
Two Atlantic City Police Officers Assaulted Responding To Armed Robbery Call–Two police officers were assaulted Tuesday when they responded to an armed-robbery call, police said. At about 6:45 a.m., Officers Jesse Oliver-Logan and Daniel Kramer responded to the Fox Manor Motel. The caller said a man was in the stairwell with a handgun. Press of Atlantic City