No New Year’s Love For Atlantic City and South Jersey Judges Are Getting Rich – Monday’s Roundup

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There will be no spotlight on Atlantic City from New Year’s Rockin’ Eve this year, The Press of Atlantic City reports. Everyone’s favorite government authority, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, had hoped to sponsor a broadcast from Boardwalk Hall using money left over from two cancelled beach concerts this summer. But apparently “scheduling conflicts and other considerations” got in the way. For anyone wondering whether or not this is a big deal, apparently New Year’s Rockin’ Eve had 22 million viewers, or 58 pct of the 18-49-year-old segment, last year. Which is a whole lot more than tuned in to the Miss America Pageant (another Dick Clark Production).

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Emma

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Two weeks ago we went to the “executive sleep out” at Covenant House, where they like to say that the least interesting thing about their kids is the fact that they’re homeless. This is Emma. She ran away from an abusive situation at home and ended up living in her car. That’s the dark place she mentions. She lived in her car for about two and a half months, then came to the shelter, where she’s been going to school and to her (two) jobs in Atlantic City.

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Buzby’s Last Stand

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A little before three o’clock last Saturday afternoon, November 19, Albertus V. Pepper Jr., age 72, of Chatsworth and Washington “Wash” Orme, 85, of Tabernacle, walked into Buzby’s General Store in Chatsworth, via the commercial kitchen. They were in a state of high animation, shouting back and forth, over and around the heads of fellow patrons.

More about: Exploring South Jersey, The Pine Barrens, bats, buzby's, chatsworth, John McPhee, marilyn schmidt, Pine Barrens

NJ/PA Tax U-Turn, Playground Problems and the Burning Pinelands – Wednesday’s Roundup

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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…

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There’s Something Happening On Pauline’s Prairie

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Something is happening down in Atlantic City’s Inlet neighborhood. A machine has appeared and some serious fencing has gone up around two vacant blocks. It’s not quite on the scale of the Gateway Project yet, but it looks like Boraie Development’s plan to build 250 rental units in one of Atlantic City’s most persistently development-starved neighborhoods is getting underway. Better known to some as Pauline’s Prairie or the mother ship of Atlantic City’s vacant lots, the site has been empty for 50 years. The project – dubbed The Beach at South Inlet – is set to include a gym, lounge, pool, parking, restaurants, shops and – yes – a grocery store alongside the housing units, but it has been slow to advance from initial plans laid out in 2013.

More about: Atlantic City, Homepage Featured, Atlantic City, boraie development, CRDA, Inlet, Pauline's Prairie, The Beach at South Inlet

Pinelands Blazes and Shopping Local Rebates – Tuesday’s Roundup

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There are several forest fires burning in Atlantic County’s Pinelands and more than 200 acres of Wharton State Forest have already been wiped out as 30-mph wind gusts are hindering efforts to contain the blaze. No roads or buildings are threatened but the windy conditions are challenging firefighters’ efforts to control the flames. The Press of Atlantic City reports that firefighters believe they should have the fires under control later today. Would you spend more in local stores if you could get money off your property tax bill in return? Haddonfield is the latest South Jersey town to try such a program, but as our NJ News Commons colleague Matt Skoufalos reports at NJ Pen, it is not as straight-forward as it first sounds and high upfront costs for business owners have hamstrung a wider rollout of the ‘Shop Local’ program.

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Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant Problems and Thanksgiving Weather – Monday’s Roundup

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The Oyster Creek nuclear plant shut down temporarily again this weekend. Newsworks reports that the nation’s oldest nuclear plant had a problem with its turbine control system. It’s maybe a good time to revisit this letter from NJ’s Sierra Club Director Jeff Tittel which said the frequent incidents at the plant show it should close before its scheduled 2020 shutdown. Everyone is gearing up for or winding down to the Thanksgiving holiday, which is shaping up to be warmer than today, at least, although there’s a chance of a few showers. Dan Skeldon has the forecast.

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Kellie

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Kellie is a mother, homeowner and casino worker. She’s also lost two young family members to gun violence. One of them was her 13-year-old son, who was murdered in 2012. Her nephew, 17, was killed this year. She has another child, 9, that she worries about.

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South Jersey Storm Surges and Which Towns Flipped to Trump – Friday’s Roundup

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We know the northern end of the state fared worse during Superstorm Sandy than the southern end – but the U.S. Geological Survey and FEMA have a new report out that looks specifically at how storm tides caused flooding during Sandy. It’s complicated and wonkish but the bottom line seems to be that South Jersey’s future flood risks may be underestimated right now, since Sandy down here did not cause storm surges that would have been classified as having a one-in-100 years chance of happening. That one-in-100 chance is the federal flood insurance program’s latest “base flood”. NJ Spotlight has the details on the report. It’s been over a week but polling results are still trickling in.

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