Blueberry Farmers’ Visa Worries
It’s that time of year again – South Jersey’s blueberry farmers are talking to employment agencies, trying to scramble together enough of a crew to hand pick their fragile crop. Farmers in the area have struggled in recent years to find enough workers with legitimate temporary work visas and this year they are even more worried. A third-generation Hammonton farmer told CBS here the immigration restrictions could push him out of business.
AC Auction
There is another Atlantic City property auction tomorrow (starting at 10 am, lasting until properties are sold). Details are here, via the website of AC Auctions, which is running the event. The properties include a motel in Atlantic City, beach-block real estate, and some commercially-zoned land and property in the suburbs (Egg Harbor Township, Pleasantville and Galloway Township). There are even bars available with liquor licenses, the Press of Atlantic City reports.
Craft Brewing
This is a great feature to read on International Women’s Day: The Press of Atlantic City’s Madison Russ spent time with women brewers and beer tenders at Tuckahoe Brewing Company in Egg Harbor Township and Ludlam Island Brewery in Ocean View. Russ writes about how perspectives on women in the beer world are changing both from within the industry and from consumers.
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In the rest of the headlines from the last 24 hours, there’s a story about Carl Icahn’s struggle to sell Trump Plaza, a volunteer-run free healthcare program opening in Egg Harbor Township, and good news and bad news for Atlantic City from a recent ratings agency release. All that and more below:
Surflight Theatre, Under New Ownership, Announces Summer Shows–A full season of live stage musicals will return this summer to the Surflight Theatre in Beach Haven after two vacation seasons of a quiet stage. Press of Atlantic City
Atlantic City Council to Consider ‘Microgrid’ to Power Casinos in Emergency–The possible demolition of Trump Plaza could allow the city to become better prepared to weather future natural disasters on the scale of Hurricane Sandy. City Council is expected to consider a resolution Wednesday to fund a study to create a power grid that would provide electricity, heating and cooling to as many as 20,000 people during an emergency. Press of Atlantic City
Atlantic City Gets Some Good News From Wall Street. And Some Bad News.–Four months after a controversial state takeover, Atlantic City appears to be on a winning streak for a change -- but the threat of bankruptcy has not been wiped away, according to a new report from a Wall Street credit rating agency. NJ.com
Former Trenton Industrial Complex Being Transformed Into Mixed-Use Community–An increasing number of New Jersey developers are finding new uses for vacant or abandoned historic buildings in urban areas, including in the state capital. “Jersey City and Hoboken, and now Newark, have experienced really incredible redevelopment, and I think that Trenton is next,” explained longtime city resident John Hatch, a principal of HHG Development Associates, LLC and a partner at Clarke Caton Hintz.
OC Raiders top rival Mainland for second straight SJ title (with video)–OCEAN CITY – Some day, it will no doubt be the Mainland Regional girls basketball team’s turn to hoist the South Jersey Group III championship trophy. Shore News Today
GOP’s Healthcare Plan Draws Rapid and Fierce Fire in New Jersey–Soon after Republicans in Congress unveiled their long-awaited proposal to replace the Affordable Care Act, healthcare providers and patient advocates joined Democratic officials from New Jersey in harshly criticizing the plan they said would drive up costs for vulnerable patients, reward wealthier residents and the insurance industry, and destroy gains made under the landmark federal law. www.njspotlight.com
Opinion: NJ Must Modernize Medicaid for the Future–Earlier this week, in a crowded room in the New Jersey State House, we unveiled “Medicaid 2.0: A Blueprint for the Future.” www.njspotlight.com
Shore town that fought dunes braces for their construction — all summer long–MARGATE, N.J. — In the battle between Margate and the State of New Jersey over whether to build dunes along the edge of this Shore town, there was a clear loser: the people in Margate who are opposed to the dunes. Philly.com
Justyn Mutts scores 20 to lead St. Augustine Prep to South Jersey title–JACKSON TOWNSHIP — The St. Augustine Prep basketball team made its third straight trip to a South Jersey final Tuesday night. Press of Atlantic City