Just announced by National Park Service.
Gateway National Recreation Area will reopen the Sandy Hook Unit to
the public for the first time since Hurricane Sandy beginning Wednesday,
May 1. A ceremony at 10 A.M. will mark the reopening, with U.S.
Congressman Frank Pallone in attendance.

"We have been looking forward to this moment since the storm hit us
and we've worked hard to make it happen this soon," said Sandy Hook Unit
Coordinator Pet McCarthy. "Employees and volunteers have literally dug
out beach centers and parking logs, and pumped out flooded basements,
we've even rebuilt sand dunes and replanted beach grasses." Work will
continue this summer as more services are restored and roads continue to
be repaved.

After the opening ceremony Congressman Pallone will address the
group, which will include the Marine Academy of Science and Technology
(MAST) Color Guard who will be on hand to present the colors. These
MAST high school student's campus is located in the park and their
campus was flooded during the storm. The students will finish the
school year at an alternate location, host their graduation at Ft.
Hancock, and will return to Sandy Hook for fall classes.

The gates will open at 5 A.M. to accommodate fishing. Maps of fishing areasare
posted on Gateway's website. Beach F, a favorite spot for fishers,
will be accessible by walking up the coast from Beach E.

Beach parking is free until Memorial Day weekend, when beach parking
will again cost $15 per day. The park will open all parking areas on
May 1st, and is intending to open the beach centers on Memorial Day
weekend. Beach parking permits will go on sale beginning May 1 at 9
A.M. at the front gate. Beach parking permits cost $75 for the season,
the same as last year.

Beaches B, Gunnison and North will be open to the public. North and
Gunnison are lifeguard-protected beaches from Memorial Day through Labor
Day during the hours of 10 A.M. to 6 P.M. Beach B is not lifeguard
protected. Beaches C, D, and E will also be guarded during the summer
season. While the sewage system undergoes repair, beach centers will
use portable toilets.

Like the rest of the New Jersey coast, the recovery of Sandy Hook is
still a work in progress. Electric, telephone, water and sewage
services were all incapacitated by the storm. These services are
largely but not entirely restored. Throughout the summer, the park will
continue to rehabilitate damaged beach centers, sections of the
multi-use path and other affected areas. Details are still being worked
out for food service but it will be limited for the summer. Ray's Bike
Rentals will be returning to Sandy Hook again this summer, however
bikes will only be available for rent at Fort Hancock. The Visitor
Center at Spermaceti Cove was one of several building damaged by the
hurricane and will remain closed at this time.

About Gateway National Recreation Area

Established in 1972, Gateway National Recreation Area offers more
than 26,000 acres of marshes, wildlife sanctuaries and recreational
athletic facilities, miles of sandy beaches; indoor and outdoor
classrooms, picnicking and camping areas, as well as historic structures
and military installations, airfields, a lighthouse, and adjacent
waters around New York harbor. The park offers urban residents in two
states a wide range of recreation opportunities year round. It is one
of the ten most visited national parks in the country. For more
information about Gateway's upcoming public programs, see the park's
website at https://www.nps.gov/gate/index.htm.

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