‘Gentlemen’ Make a Stopover in Seaside Heights

Despite rumors to the contrary Seaside Heights will not be closed to the public this weekend although if you don’t live or work there OR are not attending a huge two-day music festival you might want to head elsewhere. 

Final preparations are being made for the Gentlemen of the Road Stopover featuring Mumford & Sons and the Alabama Shakes Friday and Saturday with official expecting as many as 35,000 to attend the two-day festival.  The event is a gamble the borough is taking but one well worth the effort.

Seaside Heights has struggled to rebound from the horrific daily double of Superstorm Sandy and a huge boardwalk fire within a period of 11 months.  The town and business owners have to face the reality that white sandy beaches and a new boardwalk are not enough to attract visitors in today’s ultra-competitive tourism market.  Last summer they gambled and lost on an electronic and dance music festival that brought young people to the mile-long town but resulted in drug overdoses, arrests and plenty of bad publicity…the last thing they needed.

Now comes another music festival on the beach but this one is bigger, better-organized and geared for a demographic that should be welcome by the business community.  Of course anytime you put tens of thousands of people in a relatively small environment there’s bound to be problems but in this case I applaud those involved for taking a shot.

Yes there will be street closings, parking restrictions and detours and yes it might be an inconvenience for Seaside Heights residents but that’s the price you pay.  Bottom line is that it’s only the first weekend of June and not even the real summer season so this seems like the ideal time to roll the dice.

To clear up some rumors: at no point will the Mathis Bridge be closed so those heading over to the barrier island will be fine although traffic might be a different story.  Beginning today Seaside Heights beaches will be closed for the weekend as the main stage will be set up just south of the Casino Pier while the beaches on the north side will be used by those who camp out.  Seaside Park beaches will honor Seaside Heights beach badges through Sunday.  By the way,

towns like Seaside Park, Ortley Beach and Lavallette will operate as normal and hopefully benefit as well.  Best advice for those with questions, including parking restrictions and shuttles is to visit seaside-heightsnj.org