Another year removed from Hurricane Sandy, Jersey Shore towns are optimistic for a strong summer tourism season.
Friday's weather was proof that the success of the summer tourism season on the Jersey Shore will depend, as always, on cooperation from Mother Nature.
A group of seniors from South Brunswick High School arrived on the beach near Pier Village in Long Branch early on Friday morning in sweatshirts and sweatpants because of overcast and breezy weather.
By lunchtime the sun was shining and the students were happily sunbathing.
"I'm surprised that there's hardly anybody here yet, they're missing out," said Amanda Palumbo, 17, of South Brunswick.
Though it did not take long for the crowds to start arriving at popular Jersey Shore hotspots once the sun made its first appearance of Memorial Day weekend, giving shore towns an earlier than expected start on what they're preparing to be their most successful summer tourism season ever.
As soon as the sun came out, beachgoers flocked to the Jersey Shore's beaches and boardwalks on May 26, 2017 to kick off Memorial Day weekend. (Rob Spahr | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com) "The Snooki era is gone!" Seaside Heights Mayor Anthony Vaz declared, referring to his borough's recent push to change its reputation and attract more visitors by creating a more family friendly destination.
In addition to new restrictions on boardwalk and beach access, Vaz said the borough is also working with businesses to help promote Seaside Heights in a better light, as well as increasing police patrols and being vigilant about the cleanliness of the beaches.
The borough has also invested in renovating its bayfront property at Sunset Beach to include a new boardwalk, picnic benches, a playground, restroom facilities, additional lifeguards and film projector equipment in order to screen movies there at night.
Vaz said the bay waters are calmer and safer for small children, so he hopes that new focus on Sunset Beach - partnered with the new boardwalk rides and beachfront regulations - will bring more people than ever to Seaside Heights this summer.
"The reputation of Seaside Heights for the past 15-20 years has been one of a party town, we're working to change that," Vaz said. "It's going to take some time, but we're heading in the right direction and I'm confident that people are going to see us differently."
More post-Sandy progress
For many other Jersey Shore towns, this summer is one of continued rebirth, as many high-profile buildings that were destroyed by Hurricane Sandy are finally rebuilt and ready to welcome crowds.
In Sea Bright, Donovan's Reef - one of the Monmouth County borough's iconic bars, which provided some of the most memorable images of the storm's destruction - is set to reopen Memorial Day weekend.
Last-minute preparations were underway at Donovan's Reef in Sea Bright on May 26, 2017 as the iconic Jersey Shore bar was gearing up to open for the first time since being destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. (Rob Spahr | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com) "I think it's very symbolic and shows that we're on the final leg of our journey back from Sandy," Sea Bright Mayor Dina Long said. "When a lot of people think of Sea Bright, they think of Donovan's. It's iconic and it represents coming to the beach, listening to music and having fun. So we hope that they have they're most successful summer ever."
Donovan's Reef is not the only new thing that visitors will notice when returning to Sea Bright, which was recently named by Trillest.com as the "Best Small Town" to visit in New Jersey.
Long said there are a host of new businesses - including Bubbakoo's Burritos, GiGi's NY Style Pizza, Lucky Dog Surf Shop and Wildflower Hair Studio - that have opened in the borough's downtown, where a grant-funded streetscape project was also recently completed.
"I think for people who have never been to Sea Bright before, they'll see that it's a nice place to just enjoy being by the beach without the honky-tonk they'll get other places," Long said. "And for people who know Sea Bright and who have been coming here for years, I think they will see all of this and feel proud of Sea Bright's resilience."
Visitors to Belmar will see new buildings constructed on both the borough's oceanfront and riverfront.
Two of the borough's oceanfront pavilions have finally been rebuilt - the Taylor Pavilion is open already, and Mayor Matt Doherty said the Public Safety Pavilion will be completed by early June - and the long-awaited Marina Grille recently celebrated its grand opening on the Shark River.
"Last year was a really, really strong year for us in terms of beach badge sales and the year before we had a record year," Doherty said. "I think by having these construction projects completed, families will now have a better experience when coming to Belmar."
The weather, the water, the sand and the revenue
Doherty said Belmar's 2017 beach badge sales have been going strong since December and that the borough has also expanded its free beach access this year to include active members of the military and their families, first responders and U.S. military veterans.
However, Doherty said two important factors - in addition to the weather - often determine the success of summer season: the condition of the beaches and the condition of the water.
"The water quality off the Jersey Shore is excellent this year, the dolphins swimming of the shore is a testament to that. And the beaches are in fantastic shape, even after the nor'easter that hit us during the winter," he said. "There is plenty of beach and the beaches are clean, so - if the weather cooperates - we're expecting a strong 2017."
Monmouth County Freeholder Tom Arnone, the liaison to the county's tourism and economic development departments, said last year's tourism season drew approximately five million visitors and an generated $2.4 billion in revenue for the county, while employing more than 33,000 seasonal workers.
"Last year was a record year and I have no indication that this year is not going to be as good, if not better than last year," said Arnone, who attributed the county's tourism successes the uniqueness of its beachfront offerings and the resilience of its towns post-Sandy.
"Now that we're pretty much past all of the devastation from Sandy along our shore areas - with all of the new restaurants, businesses and pavilions coming into play - the outlook is very bright for us again this summer," Arnone said.
Long Branch was one of the municipalities that enjoyed record beach revenue in 2016, largely because a significant portion of its boardwalk that had been destroyed by Hurricane Sandy reopened in time for the summer season.
The 2016 summer tourism season - which spans from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day - was shorter than Long Branch's record-setting 2015 season and the crucial Labor Day weekend was affected by the threat of Hurricane Hermine. But Long Branch still brought in approximately $2.1 million in beach tag revenue in 2016, which Mayor Adam Schneider said was approximately $50,000 more than what was generated in 2015.
Schneider said it is too soon to predict the chances of surpassing that total again this year, but he did say that Long Branch added more events and more public parking - including on the lower portion of Broadway - this summer to help draw more people to the city.
"We don't set our expectations for success on breaking records. We're just looking to have the strongest seasons possible," Schneider said. "A lot of thing broke right for us last year and if they break right for us again, we'll be ready."
Rob Spahr may be reached at rspahr@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TheRobSpahr. Find NJ.com on Facebook.