A HARRY HURLEY OPINION - EDITORIAL

Tomorrow is June 1, 2022. It’s kinda snuck up on everyone.

This is a very important summer season for Atlantic City, New Jersey.

You can’t overstate how consequential the next three months will be for The World’s Playground.

Because of the runaway inflation, exorbitant gasoline prices, and overall dour mood in America during the past 17 months; the American people will be making major decisions about how much they can spend on vacations and recreation.

We must have a strong summer season because the Atlantic City hotels and casinos and remaining business and industry may be facing upcoming tough shoulder months and off-season.

They must make maximum profit margins now in order to make it through the 4th Quarter of 2022 and the 1st Quarter plus of 2023.

Runaway inflation, the broken supply chain, staffing shortages, and other systemic problems are expected to persist well into 2023.

MEET AC is bringing in a lot of business to Atlantic City this summer season.

This is a major departure from the long-standing philosophy of leaving the summer season alone because the casino industry and the peak vacation and tourism season well handle the summer months without a push for meetings and conventions.

These are not typical days. Instead, MEET AC is bringing a significant number of big conventions to Atlantic City during the summer months.

It’s an all-hands-on-deck, pedal to the metal approach for each and every vocation that is responsible to make the cash register ring in Atlantic City.

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For example, the National NAACP Convention will be held in Atlantic City from July 14-20, 2022 during the absolute peak summer season.

This is a huge, multi-million dollar piece of high-caliber business.

In days gone by, you would never see a mega convention like this in the middle of summer.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has stepped up big for Atlantic City, ponying up more than $2 million state dollars to sweeten the pot to win the National NAACP Convention for Atlantic City.

MEET AC worked very hard to land this convention and there is no doubt that they will deliver their usual excellence in service approach.

By comparison, The City of Atlantic City administration must get its act together. It is presently acting small, petty, and incompetent over the past year.

The City administration must clean up its act and raise its game. The stakes are too high for any cog in the wheel to break down.

They rarely complain about it, however, make no mistake about it … the highly trained and skillful hotel and casino industry, along with the leisure, tourism, convention and meetings, Stockton University, Steel Pier, restaurants, taverns, and other competent industries are very frustrated with the current dysfunctional local Atlantic City elected government.

All of these partners and more will have to step up and compensate for the shortcomings of the Atlantic City local government.

Summer, 2022 is a tipping point moment of truth for Atlantic City.

There is simply no margin for error. Failure is not an option. Success is not assured, however, the right pieces of the equation are in place minus the bad local elected government which must find a way to rise to the occasion, or, get out of the way and let the professionals take care of business.

Here’s to a successful and profitable Summer, 2022 season.

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