Boardwalk

WILDWOOD - The motherly tone is somewhere between "Eat your peas" and "Take a jacket. " Lois Stangel's recorded voice, imploring riders to "Watch the tram car, please," has become almost as synonymous with the Wildwood boardwalk experience as the blue-and-yellow sightseer trams themselves. In a few weeks, though, officials here might boastfully ask riders to "watch this tram car, please" as they unveil four spiffy new ones, the first cars added to the fleet in more than 40 years.

ATLANTIC CITY - It is best remembered for its diving horse and performances by such classic entertainers as Annie Oakley, W.C. Fields, and the Three Stooges. But for generations, the famed Steel Pier also introduced visitors to products and technology from a dazzling modern age. General Motors offered its first showcase of the newfangled horseless carriage there. Even the structure was a marvel for its time: Its steel beams extended 1,600 feet from the Boardwalk over a roiling sea, and thousands of Thomas Edison's lightbulbs gave the showplace the look of a fairyland.

For most families, a visit to Ocean City, Md., traditionally has included a stroll along the town's 2 1/2-mile-long wooden boardwalk. In the summer of 1986, the scenario will be much the same. It's the boardwalk that will have changed. It will sport a new, sturdier herringbone design from 5th Street to 27th Street. Ever since Hurricane Gloria destroyed more than half of the resort's boardwalk in late September 1985, Mayor Roland Powell and the City Council have been overseeing a $2-million reconstruction project slated for completion May 1. Even so, the boardwalk has been far from out of commission all winter long.

Six months after Hurricane Gloria badly damaged a large section of the Boardwalk, the city government still has not repaired the world-famous walkway, and some casinos and merchants are complaining that their business is suffering. Hurricane Gloria, which struck on Sept. 27, tore up and buckled several parts of the Boardwalk, including a five-block section in the heart of town near Convention Hall. That stretch of the walkway, which undulates badly and is partially closed, has blocked the passage of Boardwalk trams that normally carry passengers to two casino-hotels and some Boardwalk shops.

With every wheeze and creak of Southern yellow pine nailed flat along this resort's fabled herringbone Boardwalk, there is a tale of the city and a tale of woe. Here in the sea wind, fighter Jack Dempsey thudded along the sun-bleached boards in training for a boxing match, automobile magnate Henry Ford rumbled by in a wicker rolling chair, and baseball great Joe DiMaggio strolled toward the lacy whitecaps of the Atlantic. The splintering planks creak with history, but they also groan with financial difficulties for Atlantic City, which is now mulling the once unthinkable for its wide, four-mile wooden walk.

ATLANTIC CITY - First, the good news for this resort: Fewer people now erroneously believe the Boardwalk was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. The bad news? Twenty-five percent of respondents to an online survey still think it was. Tourism officials fear the misconception is discouraging some visitors. The Atlantic City Alliance, the new marketing arm of the casino resort, said the survey represents an improvement from a similar poll in November, in which 41 percent of respondents believed the entire Boardwalk was gone.

AVON, N.J. - Many Jersey Shore towns pummeled by Hurricane Sandy have been racing to rebuild their beachfronts and boardwalks for the summer season. But things have not gone so smoothly in this Monmouth County town. Unlike its next-door neighbor, Belmar, which already has rebuilt nearly half its boardwalk, Avon is lagging, dogged by its on-again, off-again handling of a deal to rebuild a boardwalk restaurant, a court injunction over an eighth-of-an-inch difference in the size of boards between one company's bid and another's, and a protest by environmentalists over the town's plan to use rain-forest wood to rebuild the walkway.

A fire that raged out of control for more than two hours last night destroyed a block of shops and eateries on Wildwood's boardwalk, fire officials said. At least 400 firefighters from nine volunteer fire companies battled the blaze, which broke out at 7:54 p.m. in the row of one-story wooden buildings lining the boardwalk between Spencer and Young Avenues, fire officials said. The fire was declared under control shortly after 10 p.m., but officials said firefighters would remain on the scene through the night.

It's only the best for baby when Ocean City has its annual tiny tots parade on the boardwalk. There are marching bands and string bands and prizes for the cutest girls and boys. This year, there were little ones in antique prams and all sorts of creative get-ups, some helped along by their parents. Even some commercial floats joined in. About 266 children, all younger than 10, took part when the 81st annual show began at Sixth Street on Thursday. Almost two hours later, when the 38 judges - all female - had completed their task, they had more than 30 awards to give in different categories.

Atlantic City may never reestablish itself as "America's Favorite Playground," even though we still hear the slogan in certain optimistic, gung-ho circles at the Shore. But don't tell that to the folks sponsoring Beach Fest '95 this weekend. Billed as one of the largest free family festivals on the Eastern Seaboard, the three-day event is being sponsored by the Atlantic City Offshore Racing Association (ACORA), which has dedicated itself to promoting the city. Although most of the entertainment these days is in the casino-hotel showrooms, the showroom in this case will be the Atlantic City beach and Boardwalk, from one end to the other.

Despite gaming revenue's precipitous decline at Atlantic City's casinos in the last six years, glamorous images of gamblers behind poker and blackjack tables will be included in the 2013 campaign of the Atlantic City Alliance, which is charged with rebranding the Shore town and its new tourism district. The addition of gaming ads - one titled, "Your Tables Are Ready;" another, "Bring Your Game Face and Your Poker Face" - is a shift from last year's inaugural campaign. The alliance works in partnership with the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority and was created as part of Gov. Christie's five-year revitalization plan for the ailing resort.

FANS OF A LADY looking for love on television and oft-shirtless, blandly attractive men: Get thyselves to Atlantic City. "The Bachelorette," now in its ninth season, is filming in A.C. all week. Desiree Hartsock , who was rejected by Sean Lowe on the last season of "The Bachelor," now has the upper hand in the war of the roses. My spies gave me the scoop on where they're all heading. The cast started shooting Monday and is staying at Revel, the fancy-schmancy casino that recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

  ATLANTIC CITY - Jacob Zimlichman had heard the entire Jersey Shore was underwater, destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. He knew that wasn't true. That's why the New Yorker was on Atlantic City's Steel Pier on Sunday as part of the seaside entertainment park's summer-season debut. "I didn't have any second thoughts about coming here," Zimlichman said as he watched his child enjoy a ride on the Mighty Stampede. State tourism officials wish everyone were as confident of the many miles of New Jersey beaches in good condition.

FAMILY Egg hunt South Philly gets its Easter on early at this popular event, where kids dash for prize- and candy-filled eggs. Ages 4 and younger get to go first (at 11 a.m.), 5- to 7-year-olds are at noon and 8-to-10-year-olds hunt at 1 p.m. After, Passyunk Avenue vendors offer edible specials. South Philadelphia Older Adult Center, 1430 E. Passyunk Ave., 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, free, 215-336-1455, visiteastpassyunk.com. Chocolate tours At Lore's Palm Sunday open house, kids get to tour shop's below-ground chocolate-making operations, and grown-ups can snap photos of their small charges chillin' with the Easter bunny.

As Jersey Shore towns look for ways to rebuild boardwalks destroyed by Hurricane Sandy, one company is offering a recycled building material that it says is more durable than wood and reuses tons of plastic that would otherwise end up in landfills. Axion International, based in Union County, combines the kinds of plastic used in milk jugs and car dashboards to fabricate a substance that is strong enough to make railroad ties, and is resistant to the waves and water that degrade wooden boardwalks over time.

AVON, N.J. - This Jersey Shore town, facing the threat of a boycott over its plan to use rain forest wood to rebuild a boardwalk destroyed by Hurricane Sandy, isn't backing down. Avon, in Monmouth County, says it will stick with its plan to use ipe wood. At a meeting Monday night, several environmental groups asked the Borough Commission to reconsider but were rebuffed. "There is a consensus to move ahead," Commissioner Frank Gorman said after hearing nearly two hours of objections from residents and out-of-town environmentalists.

AVON, N.J. - Many Jersey Shore towns pummeled by Hurricane Sandy have been racing to rebuild their beachfronts and boardwalks for the summer season. But things have not gone so smoothly in this Monmouth County town. Unlike its next-door neighbor, Belmar, which already has rebuilt nearly half its boardwalk, Avon is lagging, dogged by its on-again, off-again handling of a deal to rebuild a boardwalk restaurant, a court injunction over an eighth-of-an-inch difference in the size of boards between one company's bid and another's, and a protest by environmentalists over the town's plan to use rain-forest wood to rebuild the walkway.

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. - When Hurricane Sandy washed over this popular Jersey Shore resort, water poured in through the heating vents and electrical outlets of Linda Polites' and Michael Riley's home. A 10-foot section of boardwalk slammed into the house as they fled to the attic. Hours later, they waded through armpit-deep water to a military truck, then headed to the first of five emergency shelters that have been their homes since. On Friday, while they awaited repairs to their house, they traveled from their shelter to see the start of the reconstruction of the boardwalk in Seaside Heights, a town known worldwide from the MTV reality show Jersey Shore . "You don't lose your memories.

BELMAR, N.J. - As Jersey Shore towns spend millions of dollars to rebuild boardwalks wrecked by Sandy, some are opting for an additional layer of protection in the form of steel seawalls placed between the boards and the shoreline. The idea is to protect the boardwalks - and the homes and businesses nearby - from the destructive power of storm surges. "It has to be an engineered seawall-and-dune system that will protect the boardwalk and mitigate against the storm surge going into the neighborhood," Belmar Mayor Matthew Doherty said.

ATLANTIC CITY - First, the good news for this resort: Fewer people now erroneously believe the Boardwalk was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. The bad news? Twenty-five percent of respondents to an online survey still think it was. Tourism officials fear the misconception is discouraging some visitors. The Atlantic City Alliance, the new marketing arm of the casino resort, said the survey represents an improvement from a similar poll in November, in which 41 percent of respondents believed the entire Boardwalk was gone.