Long Beach Island Wants You Back At Its Businesses
BEACH HAVEN, N.J. (CBSNewYork) - It's taken a lot of hard work, sweat, and money to re-open the doors of a lot of businesses impacted by superstorm Sandy.
On Long Beach Island, the vast majority are ready for Memorial Day weekend, and they hope you'll stop by.
Some tape on the wall at The Chicken or the Egg restaurant in Beach Haven shows the water line from the storm, more than three feet high.
Long Beach Island Wants You Back At Its Businesses
"It was a daunting prospect initially. We didn't know where to start," owner Mark Cohen told WCBS 880's Peter Haskell.
Cohen dug into his pocket and spent more than $150,000 of his own money even though they had flood insurance.
"Me personally, I was looking into tapping out all my credit cards again like the old days," he said. "We weren't covered to the point where we thought we were covered. Of course, this is what everybody finds out is that 'Oh no, we don't cover that.'"
Down the block at Murphy's Marketplace, owner Ronald Murphy borrowed $1.5 million and worked for six months to reopen his store.
"I'm not a quitter. You know, I'm a hard-headed Irish guy from north Philadelphia," he told Haskell.
Both men are optimistic, filled with devotion and determination.
"I think it's going to be a great season. I don't anticipate a drop off from last year," Cohen said.
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