Freeholders Kickoff Monmouth County Tourism Season

BRADLEY BEACH, NJ –Overlooking the beach and breaking surf, the Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders and local civic leaders outlined their picture of the 2017 summer tourism season and unveiled a new county tourism logo on the Bradley Beach promenade.

“Monmouth County is open for business and ready for Summer!,” said Freeholder Thomas A. Arnone, liaison to the County’s Tourism and Economic Development divisions. “Last weekend’s New Jersey Seafood Festival in Belmar was a great success for the businesses and the food purveyors. We are expecting another solid year for tourism for the rest of the county and the County Tourism Office has been working diligently to connect with potential visitors and let them know that their vacation plans should include Monmouth County.”

Last year, tourists spent $2.441 billion in the county. Tourism spending helps fuel employment and sales in dining, recreation, lodging, retail and transportation.

The Freeholders unveiled a new tourism logo representing the many of the experiences visitors enjoy when they visit Monmouth County. Parks, agriculture, history, nature, boating and the ocean are all depicted in the new graphic representation.

“Tourism directly and indirectly employs 8.5 percent of our local workforce and translates to more than 33,000 jobs,” said Freeholder Serena DiMaso, Esq., liaison to the County’s Tourism and Workforce divisions. “While our workforce enjoys a boost to the local economy from Memorial Day to Labor Day, County Workforce Development staff is available to help business and job seekers year round.”

The Monmouth County One-Stop Career Center is located at 145 Wyckoff Rd., Suite 201, in Eatontown.  The office hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays.

The tourism logo is being used on all the county’s social media accounts and will be incorporated in advertising and other promotional elements. The hashtag #MonmouthSummer was introduced.

Freeholders Arnone and DiMaso also announced the winners of the first-ever Monmouth County Summer Kick-off poster contest. The grand prize winners were:  Cameron Caruso (PreK-2) for his crayon-drawn single surfer; Kimberly Jimenez Rojas (Grade 3-5),for her mixed media beach life favorites drawing; and Liam Merenda (Grade 6-8) for his surfing inspired watercolor art. Honorable mention: Daniel Milchman (PreK-2), Gerlinde Dunnican (Grade 3-5), and Edith Silva (6-8). The students were awarded summer-themed prize packages with sunglasses, beach towels, and complimentary tickets to several events and attractions.

The students were also welcomed by Freeholder Deputy Director John P. Curley, Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden, Monmouth County Clerk Christine Hanlon, Bradley Beach Mayor Gary Engelstad, Manasquan Mayor Ed Donovan and several other area dignitaries and business owners including representatives from The Breakers Hotel, Monmouth Park, the Eastern Monmouth Chamber of Commerce and NJ TRANSIT.

The 2016 breakdown in tourism spending included: $641 million on food & beverages, $495 million on accommodations, $546 million on recreation & entertainment, $451 million on retail, $307 million on transportation and $279 million on second homes. Overall, spending in Monmouth County was up 3.3 percent over the previous year. Monmouth County sees about 5 million visitors each year.

Big events scheduled for the 2017 summer season include:

• Bradley Beach Lobsterfest – June 24 & 25
• Oceanfest in Long Branch – July 4
• Monmouth County Fair – July 26-30
• Haskell Race at Monmouth Park – July 30
• Highlands Clam Festival–August 3 to 6
• Ocean Township Italian Festival – August 9 to 11

To find out what is happening now in Monmouth County, visitors and residents are encouraged to check out the tourism calendar of events at VisitMonmouth.com and to follow Monmouth County Tourism on Facebook and Twitter. Visitors and residents are using the hashtag #MonmouthSummer, to share reasons why they know “Monmouth County is the Place You Want to Be.”