February 2014

83 fine restaurants from throughout Atlantic County will participate in the 6th Annual Atlantic City Restaurant Week from Sunday, March 2 through Saturday, March 8. All participating restaurants will offer special fixed-price lunch

menus for $15.14 and dinners for $33.14 (tax, gratuity and beverages not included). The actual value of the meals is significantly greater than the Restaurant Week price, offering diners an opportunity to try

new restaurants or revisit old favorites while taking advantage of bargain prices.

This always-popular event continues to attract diners and participating restaurants in record numbers. An average of 80 restaurants per year make up an impressive list of dining establishments. Atlantic City Restaurant Week continues to maintain its popularity with an average growth in diners at 30% each year.

In 2013, the number of diners increased 41% over 2012.

The 2014 edition of Atlantic City Restaurant Week is sponsored by A.C. Central Reservations, Inc., Atlantic City Country Club, Borgata, Caesars Entertainment, Ed Hitzel Enterprises, Equity Communica-tions, Greater Atlantic City Chamber of Commerce, Interstate Outdoor Advertising, OpenTable.com,

Press of Atlantic City, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey and Tropicana Casino and Resort.

The full list of participating restaurants is available at www.acrestaurantweek.com with links to their Restaurant Week menus, chef bios and much more. Restaurant Week gift certificates are also available and make the

perfect gift.

6th Annual Atlantic City

Restaurant Week Offers

Delicious Meals and Affordable Deals

The Garden State Film Festival, New Jersey’s premier independent film festival, has announced that it will relocate to Atlantic City for their 12th

annual film festival, which will be held April 3-6, 2014.

This move is a critical step in accommodating ever-increasing attendance, which has topped 35,000 spectators in the past. The move to Atlantic City will also be an advantage in the festival’s efforts to attract additional big-name celebrities, with an abundance of both gaming and non-gaming amenities, which Atlantic City has to offer along with increased dining

options and a greater selection of hotel accommodations.

The Festival will be well equipped to serve their guests and increased attendance at four locations in Atlantic City—Dante Hall, Resorts Casino Hotel, Trump Taj Mahal and The Chelsea—while continuing the Atlantic City Tourism District’s revitalization efforts through arts, commerce and

culture.

The festivities will begin on Thursday, April 3 with community activities and public school film screenings. On Friday, April 4 a star-studded gala cocktail kick-off party honoring Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno will be held at Resorts Casino Hotel. An exciting docket of films, parties, workshops, seminars and an open casting call will be held on Saturday, April 5 and Sunday, April 6 culminating with

the awards dinner that night at Trump Taj Mahal.

The Garden State Film Festival was founded to promote the art of filmmaking on all levels by showcasing a wide variety of film, video and animated works as well as provide educational programs in

the creative arts to the public by industry leaders.

The Garden State Film Festival celebrates New Jersey’s legacy as the birthplace of the American film-making industry. The first film cameras and projectors were invented by Thomas Edison in his Menlo

Park laboratories. Fort Lee, NJ served as the site of the original movie studios before Hollywood, CA.

For more information on the Annual Garden State Film Festival, visit http://www.gsff.org.

Garden State Film Festival Eager and Excited

to Make Its Atlantic City Debut

Get Out the Vote! Atlantic City

Nominated in Top 10 NJ Beaches Poll

The annual New Jersey Top 10 Beaches Survey is once again looking to crown the state’s most popular family vacation, ecotourism and day trip locations

from throughout the Garden State.

Atlantic City, with its free beaches, fun-filled activities and year-round amenities, is vying with nearly 70 other state-wide attractions and locations for the annual privilege to call the destination resort the best of the best. Vote for Atlantic City here through the end of April:

www.njtoptenbeaches.org/we-are-back .

The New Jersey Top 10 Beaches Survey was originally introduced in 2008 as a way to inspire pride in and stewardship of the state’s beaches while promoting some healthy and friendly competition

between New Jersey’s beach towns.

Results of the survey will be announced prior to the Memorial Day weekend at the New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium’s State of the Shore Media Event, which is a premier gathering of coastal experts, state officials, and members of the media, to kick off the

Jersey Shore summer season, on Thursday, May 22.

Annual Host Awards May 7

Nominations are currently being accepted for the 17th Annual Atlantic City Host Awards Ceremony to be held on Wednesday, May 7 in the Adrian

Phillips Ballroom at Historic Boardwalk Hall.

Non-managerial employees in the hotel, restaurant, retail, tourism or hospitality-related fields, including the public sector are eligible to be nominated by

management personnel only.

Employees should have direct contact with, or provide support to, visitors and customers and distinguish themselves by promoting Atlantic City through exemplary service and customer

satisfaction.

New in 2014 is the Visitor’s Choice Award, which will allow visitors to vote via email in order to recognize a local hospitality employee that has gone above and beyond to make an Atlantic City

experience a special one.

SID Hiring Landscapers & EVS;

New Ambassadors in Training

15 recently-hired, full time Ambassadors began two weeks of training on Monday, February 24. Topics covered will be: customer service, code enforce-ment, mercantile, local attractions, directions, how to interact with ACPD, ACFD, ACOEM, Rescue

Mission, performing CPR and much more.

The Landscape Department is hiring two seasonal employees and three seasonal public space construc-tion employees. Prior landscape/construction experience needed along with valid NJ drivers

license.

Environmental Services will start interviewing on April 14 for steam cleaning/lot cutting (must have

drivers license), pan/broom, and Bill Goat operators.

Applications are available at the CRDA Annex at

The Garage in Gordon’s Alley.

Members of the Atlantic City Fire Department (ACFD) will personally lend their support during the National Education Association’s (NEA) 17th Annual Read Across America Day on Monday, March 3, as well as on Friday, March 7. Four to five firemen along with a captain will read to the children of the Texas Avenue School starting at 2 pm on March 3 and then will make another appearance four days later at the

Sovereign Avenue School on March 7.

The NEA is crafting a community of readers through the Read Across America program, which focuses on motivating children and teenagers to read through events, partnerships and reading resources. For the second consecutive year, Read Across America is focusing on the importance of oral health and its connection to literacy thanks to national sponsor and dental benefits provider Renaissance Dental. Studies show that poor oral health is a leading cause in school absenteeism, which causes students to lose millions of hours of vital

reading instruction.

Atlantic City Fire Department Visits Local Elementary Schools

to Support of Annual Read Across America Day

DO AC Marketing Video Recognized

with Prestigious Telly Award

The CRDA’s Conven-tion Center Division Marketing Department has once again been recognized for its exceptional DO AC marketing video, this time with a Bronze Telly

Award.

The Telly Awards is the premier award honoring the finest film and video productions, ground-breaking web commer-cials, videos and films, and outstanding local,

regional, and cable TV commercials and programs.

The DO AC marketing video recently also won a MarCom Gold Award in the Video/Film/Marketing

Product & Service category.

CRDA’s “Daily Sheet” Keeps Visitors

and Stakeholders Informed

The CRDA’s Communications and Marketing team recently debuted the “Daily Sheet” which is a resource guide for visitors and

stakeholders.

Two separate documents, Entertainment and Business, provides an easy and accessible document so that local businesses and residents are aware of all that is happening throughout the city on any

given day.

The CRDA Communications team manages the information and distributes updates routinely as new information is acquired. If you or someone you know wishes to receive the “Daily Sheet”, please send your request via email to

lbowman@njcrda.com.

Arts Garage Events in March

Arts Garage artist Steve Kuzma will be at The Noyes Museum in Hammonton on Saturday, March

1, 1-3:30 pm to teach studio/plein air techniques.

Learn to weave a door knob basket with Master Basket Maker, Debra Simpson of The Ivy Cottage on Saturday, March 22, 10:30-5 pm at the Arts

Garage.

Celebrate the arrival of the traveling Smithsonian Exhibit “Hometown Teams” on Wednesday, March 26, 2-3 pm at the Arts Garage. This event is free

and open to the public.

On Friday, March 28, 6-8:30 pm at the Arts Garage, Story Slam, a competition like a poetry slam but with stories of 500 words or less. Winners will receive fabulous prizes! Enjoy light refreshments

while sharing stories.

Visit www.artsgarageac.com for more information.

2013-14 Lead Atlantic City Tomorrow Class Begins 10-Month

Program Towards Building Stronger Community

The 2014 Lead Atlantic City Tomorrow Program (Lead ACT) kicked off its second year with a group of new Fellows ready to take on and learn about the various public policy issues facing Atlantic City. Lead ACT is a coordinated program between the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA), the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, and several community members. This collaboration revived the once-successful Atlantic City Tomorrow program that ran for over a decade and

has over 300 graduates.

Lead ACT is a ten-month public policy leadership development training program designed for experienced and emerging leaders that are committed to building a stronger community within Atlantic City through civic engagement and empowerment. The mission of the program is to strengthen, solidify, and improve the City’s civic and community infrastructure through collaborative efforts of engaging experienced and emerging leaders. Its ultimate goal is to increase awareness and an understanding of the issues that confront the community, while enhancing the skills and knowledge of individuals to meet these current and future

challenges.

Last year the program graduated 22 individuals who are already making a positive impact on Atlantic City through a number of educational, volunteer or civic opportunities. The 2014 class had their kick-off celebration in December 2013 and meet for the first time in late February. They will then meet one day per month culminating in a graduation ceremony scheduled for this December. The program is coordinated by Ali Reynolds, Director of Community Development & Partnerships at the CRDA, and

Alex Marino, Assistant to the Provost for Atlantic City at Stockton College.

The 2013-14 Lead ACT Fellows are: Marc Berman, Devan Blackwell, Sabrena Brandon, Tiana Cannon, Jennifer Capossela, Wilmer Castro, Edward Curran, John Dixon III, Laura Lopez Einwechter, Laura Esparza, John Exadaktilos, Sara Gendlek, Lisa C. Givens, Leonard Golden, Gloria Hamlett, Rachelle Knight, Odessa Lawry, Sara Ruth Passaro, Andrea Lynn Petinga, Cydnee Phoenix, Donna

Prince, and Whitney Ullman.

Courtesy of Alex Marino, Assistant to the Provost for Atlantic City at The Richard Stockton College of NJ

(Above) - Some of the 2013-14 Lead Atlantic City

Tomorrow Fellows at the recent kick-off event.

Arts Garage Events in March

CRDA Project Update

A contract was recently awarded to DiMarco Group of Rochester, NY to construct the $18 million, 86,000-square-foot Bass Pro Shop. A spring 2015 grand opening is anticipated for this outdoorsman super store that will encompass four city

blocks and feature an elaborate aquarium with native species, boat showroom, an Uncle Buck’s Fishbowl and Grill complete

with fish-themed bowling lanes and a 170-space parking lot.

Bids have been received for construction of the Lighthouse Park District, which will create an open space “green way” from

Historic Absecon Lighthouse eastward to Altman Park, which fronts the Absecon Inlet waterfront. This $11.6 million project

will also include street enhancements for pedestrians and

bicycle access, with an anticipated completion date of fall 2014.

Construction of the Harrah’s Conference Center is currently ongoing with steel erection continuing after a brief pause to redesign a trash room in the new facility. Pile fills are 99.3% complete while the foundations are 85.6% complete. A fall

2015 opening is anticipated and between 60-140 permanent jobs

could be generated.

The CRDA’s Atlantic Avenue Façade Program is proceeding with its first block project on the

south side of the 1600 block.

This project is currently in the permitting phase and a contract has been awarded to Shore Building Contractors of

Hammonton.

Blumberg Associates of Atlantic City provided

architectural renderings and

specifications.

Atlantic City Tourism District Advisory Commission

2014 Annual Meeting Schedule

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

All meetings are held at 5 pm at the offices of:

Casino Reinvestment Development Authority

15 South Pennsylvania Avenue

Atlantic City, NJ 08401

Derek Cason, Chair

Daryl Bulthius, Vice Chair/Committee Chair, Marketing & Promotion

John Exadaktilos, Committee Chair, Clean & Safe

Joseph Kelly, Committee Chair, Economic Development

Joseph Maher

Keith Mills

Ali Reynolds

Vladislav “Sly” Stankovic

Rev. William Williams, Committee Chair, Workforce & Education

Published by the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority

Written by David Zuba, Media Relations Publicist

Do you have an idea for a story? If so, please contact David Zuba at dzuba@njcrda.com