Mall Rededication June 21
The long-awaited rededication of the Washington Street Mall took place Saturday, June 21 at 10 a.m. Pictured here is the carriage of dignitaries arriving at the mall.

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For an overview of the construction: Click for progress details in pictures.

Cape May – Tuesday, June 17. City Manager Luciano Corea was removed from office after a closed session of Cape May City Council. The announcement was made by Mayor Jerry Inderwies in the form of an added resolution to city council’s regular agenda. Chief Financial Officer Bruce MacLeod was appointed interim city manager.

  Corea has received heavy criticism for his and Police Chief Diane Sorantino's handling of two bistros whose patio businesses were shut down over the Memorial Day weekend for allegedly not having obtained the proper patio permits. Both establishments - Dairy Queen and Cucina Rosa - maintain that their patio permits were in place and did not expire until June 30.
   As part of another added resolution recommended by City Solicitor Tony Monzo, both establishments were granted the re-issuance of their permits. The timing of Corea’s dismissal comes as Mayor Inderwies presided over his last council meeting. Inderwies lost his bid for a third term as mayor in the May election. 

The closing of Convention Hall forced city officials to reschedule Memorial Day services to the monument on Columbia Avenue.

 

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Cape May, May 13 - Disgruntled voters ousted current Mayor Jerome Inderwies in favor of former mayor Ed Mahaney on Tuesday. Mahaney garnered 530 votes to Inderwies' 457. Another former mayor and council member, Jerry Gaffney received 87 votes. New comer Terri Swain won the council seat vacated by David Craig with 480 votes. Another newcomer, Jeanne Powick, captured 315 votes, leaving the older men out in left field. Harry Bellangy got 141 votes, while former councilman Jack Wichterman received 129. Pictured at left: Mayor-elect Dr. Ed Mahaney at Memorial day services.

CONVENTION HALL CLOSED
Cape May, May 6 – It took City Council all of about three minutes to decide at Tuesday's workshop session to not to spend in excess of $300,000 to shore up Convention Hall to make it quasi-safe for the summer season. So it will remain closed for the season, pending possible demolition in the fall. Best case scenario, the new Convention Hall would open for the summer of 2010. Construction of the new building would will take anywhere from 14-18 months.
 The firm Pennoni Associates Inc. out of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, hired to perform a structural analysis of Convention Hall today recommended closing the facility. The report, received today said: “The present condition of the Convention Hall is structurally unsound. Due to the amount of deterioration observed, the structural integrity of the floor framing is severely compromised. It is our professional opinion that this building be closed to public use until repairs can be performed in accordance with the recommendations outlined in the RVWE reports.”
Many venues have been relocated to facilities throughout the city like the Cape May Elementary School. Be sure to check with the sponsoring organization for details.
Pennoni Associates Inc were recently ranked #4 of the 25 best engineering firms by the Philadelphia Business Journal.
In early February, Mayor Jerry Inderwies announced at a work session of City Council that plans for a new Convention Hall will be delayed for one year to investigate other architectural designs which might include better use of the "back" of Convention Hall facing the ocean. Mayor Inderwies said the delay will not jeopardize a $300,000 Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) grant set aside for the project. No matter what design is finally accepted, the project is not to exceed $10 million. To that end, a bond ordinance for $10 million was passed by council April 14, following the condemnation of Convention Hall.
Cape May Harbor, April 9 – Two days after legislation, sponsored by State Sen. Jeff Van Drew, calling for the removal of abandoned boats passed, two of three abandoned boats were lifted from Cape May Harbor. The third was slated for salvaging on Thursday.

Cats Banned From Beaches?
Cape May, Mar. 4, 2007 – City Council finally passed a resolution protecting feral cats from plundering nesting birds on the beach and at the same time retaining feral-cat colonies and the city's TNR (Trap-Neuter-Release) program and safeguards continued financial aid for the Cape May's beach-replenishment program.
The latest in a series of compromises, going back as far as October, was reached by city officials, members of the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and animal rights activists. It bans feral cats from within 1,000 yards of the beach and one half-mile from designated bird nesting areas.
At a Feb. 6 work session, council members announced they had reached a compromise with the state (DEP) and the US Fish and Wildlife Service with regard to the city's compliance with the Beach Replenishment Act, which called for the elimination of feral cat colonies.
City Council blinked at a Feb. 19 meeting when faced with a standing room only crowd of animal rights activists who turned out to protest the city's proposed adoption of the resolution to ban feral cats colonies as well as any cats from within 1,000 years of the beach.
Back in October, city council, in a 5-0 vote, adopted a compromise plan which would have allowed feral cat colonies to continue in the form of a Trap-Neuter-Release (TNR) program, but also keeps them 1,000 feet from bird nests, like the piping plover. However, NJDEP officials found the plan unacceptable. As a result, Corea said the city would be "revisiting" their TNR program.
Protestors, who picketed in front of city hall prior to the council meeting, have maintained that humans and other predators are far more likely to disturb the nesting areas than the cats.
The cats are said to be a threat to the piping plover, least tern and the black skimmer.

Mayor Calls for One year Delay on Convention Hall Plans
Cape May, Feb. 6 – Mayor Jerry Inderwies announced at a work session of City Council today that plans for a new Convention Hall will be delayed for one year to investigate other architectural designs which might include better use of the "back" of Convention Hall facing the ocean. Mayor Inderwies said the delay will not jeopardize a $300,000 Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) grant set aside for the project. What design is finally accepted, the project is not to cost more than $10 million.