SENATE ANNOUNCES INITIATIVE AIMED AT HELPING NJ BUSINESS COMMUNITY Senate, Retailers Join ‘JerseyShore Is Open for Business’ Campaign To Let People Know Which Businesses Are Open In Areas Hardest Hit By Sandy

TRENTON – Senate President Steve Sweeney and Republican Leader Thomas Kean, Jr. today announced that the Senate will be joining the ‘Jersey Shore Is Open for Business’ campaign, an initiative to help New Jersey residents find which stores and businesses are open in the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Sandy. The project is being done in conjunction with the New Jersey Restaurant and New Jersey Retail Merchants Associations, as well as the Jersey Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“The only way we are going to truly recover from Sandy is by giving our small businesses the tools they need to succeed," said Sweeney. "One of the things we have learned from our hearings and tours is that many businesses have reopened, but people in the community and surrounding area do not know it. We have to do something to correct that. It is bad enough that these places had to close during the storm, but now they are losing business through virtually no fault of their own. This website is going to help correct that."

"When these businesses get back on their feet, people can go back to work and provide for their families. It is absolutely essential that we get these sources of livelihood for New Jersey families back up and running,” said Kean.

The initiative will build upon the ‘Jersey Shore Is Open for Business’ campaign by promoting and expanding the website http://www.visitthejerseyshore.com/ or http://www.visitthejerseyshore.mobi/ to allow people to search for open businesses by municipality. In addition, business owners will be able to contact the Jersey Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau if they wish to be included on the site.

"Many of our folks are ready and open for business, but they do not have an easy way to convey that to the public. This website will help fix that, which in turn, will provide a great boost to our local businesses and stores. We are proud to work along with the Senate leaders on this issue," said New Jersey Retail Merchants Association (NJRMA) President John Holub.

"As we rebuild after Sandy, we need to get Main Street back up and running. People are looking for places to eat and shop, but they just don't know what is back open after the storm. By having a single, one-stop-shop with this kind of information, we will continue our efforts on behalf of small business to provide a boost in these difficult economic times," said New Jersey Restaurant Association President Marilou Halvorsen.

“We are well into the recovery phase from Hurricane Sandy and the great majority of our retailers are open and back in business,” said Robert Hilton, Executive Director of the Jersey Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau. “Getting the word out to the public that the ‘Jersey Shore Is Open’ is key to helping our shore businesses recover financially. This new partnership with the Senate and the state’s retail and restaurant associations will improve our ability to drive people to our businesses so they can return to their pre-storm operations.”

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