Ocean City's latest attempt to stop visitors from coming to town during the coronavirus crisis is to temporarily prohibit online marketplaces such as Airbnb from offering short-term rentals.

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In a statement released sunday, Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian said he remains concerns about the recent influx of tourists to Ocean City during the current public health emergency.

Although Ocean City ordinarily welcomes all visitors, at this time we must take all available steps to enforce social distancing recommendations and limit nonessential travel to Ocean City.

As authorized by Gov. Phil Murphy’s Executive Order No. 108, Ocean City will prohibit online marketplaces from offering short-term rentals until further notice.

In addition, I have spoken with leaders in the Ocean City real estate community, and they have agreed to suspend short-term rentals of any kind. I urge all private owners to do the same.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a new request yesterday for all residents of New Jersey and surrounding states to stop nonessential travel.

Gov. Murphy continues to allow municipalities to take new measures to fight the spread of COVID-19.

Earlier this week, the mayor ordered the closing of Ocean City's beach and boardwalk.

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