Good season comes to an enjoyable end
OCEAN CITY — With all of the activities and beautiful fall weather, Ocean City and other parts of the Jersey shore will be bustling for months to come, but the official summer season came to an end last weekend.
Merchants were taking stock of business and families were getting one last summer weekend at the beach, complete with their favorite treats.
“This was the closest thing to a fully normal summer in a long time.”
That’s how Ocean City Boardwalk Merchants Association President Wes Kazmarck characterized the 2022 season, saying his organization’s members had a very strong year.
Kazmarck said high gas prices and across-the-board inflation may have eliminated some day-trippers but that most people spending a week or longer at their shore home still came to the island.
“I can’t speak for other towns, but it seemed to be fairly minimal in Ocean City,” Kazmarck said. “You can still get down on one tank of gas; it did not seem to hurt us.”
The lack of any substantial rain over the 10 weeks of summer certainly helped. No weather forecaster was even hinting at a wet weekend.
“Weather is always the biggest factor,” Kazmarck said. “When it’s too hot, too cold, too rainy, it’s not good for anybody. We had great weather — after a slow start with rain and freezing cold. Once we hit Memorial Day weekend, we never looked back.”
Scott, 40, and Jamie, 35, of North Brunswick, were soaking up the sun Friday afternoon. They picked Ocean City for the last week of summer because their family is vacationing here.
“I’m a little sad,” Jamie said of summer ending, “but I’m excited for fall.”
“It’s bittersweet,” Scott added.
They agreed they like Ocean City because it’s “very relaxed and laid back.”
A Vineland couple and their daughter were sitting in their beach chairs, getting tan and reading. They have been coming to Ocean City for some 40 years, but on Friday they were just down for the day.
Their favorite part of Ocean City? “The food on the boardwalk.”
Any favorites? “All of the above,” Gary Fixler laughed. Kohr Brothers Ice Cream, Chickie’s and Pete’s crab fries, Polish Water Ice and Johnson’s Popcorn topped the list.
“And the pizza,” wife Karen Gaburo Fixler added, singling out Manco and Manco.
She said it was sad that summer was ending and she was “a little depressed.” They wanted one more day at the beach, but said they’ll be coming back in the fall.
Stephanie Fixler, who was with her mom and stepdad, agreed with her parents.
Three friends from South Jersey also were enjoying the beach on a day trip.
Lindsey Fratz of Cherry Hill said they come to Ocean City because of “the atmosphere, the boardwalk, the pizza, Kohr Brothers — all the classics you have to do before the end of summer.”
She has had only three beach days all summer so she was “trying to make the most of it” Friday.
Stephanie Greco of Mays Landing said her favorite part is “the pizza from Manco and Manco. I haven’t had it in a couple of years, actually.” And then there is Kohr Brothers — “they have a mint custard I really like.” She then really narrowed it down: “All the food,” she laughed, adding she likes coming to Ocean City for similar reasons as Fratz, and included the lifeguards and that there are bathrooms nearby. (The city built two new sets of bathrooms on the boardwalk just before summer that were only a block or two away.)
Greco said it was “definitely bittersweet” that summer is ending, “but this is a good time to come here — the very end of August, the beginning of September. The water is usually warmer right now.”
“We always feel safe here. It’s nice and clean,” DeAnn Benvenuto of Clarksboro said about why they choose Ocean City. She was sitting in the sun. Husband John, under a beach umbrella, added they like the shops and restaurants and that “the people are nice.”
John said they usually rent a house in the resort but time it outside the summer season, picking a week in May and one in September or October. They were just down for a day Friday.
“It came awful quick,” DeAnn said of the end of summer, which “went very fast.”
They’ll be back this fall.
“It’s usually a lot less people but the beach is still enjoyable,” she said.
When they’re in town, they enjoy Manco and Manco Pizza and going to the Varsity Inn. “We like all the thrift shops because they’re always good for charity and they’re fun to go in to see what you can find,” she added.
McKenna Pontari was working behind the counter at Fralinger’s on Friday. The rising senior at Mainland Regional High School, where she plays basketball and runs track, liked spending her summer working on the boardwalk.
“I really enjoyed it. This is my first year working here,” Pontari said. Being on the boardwalk, she got to see a lot of new faces and to talk to different people. “They’re all really nice,” she added.
She is happy to be a senior and expects a fun last year at Mainland, but she was a bit sad summer was coming to an end.
By DAVID NAHAN and CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff