THE RIDGEWOOD BLOG.
The Ridgewood Blog Brings a Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View to Local, New Jersey State and National Issues.
New Jersey struggles to capitalize on its historic past
Historic Schedler Zabriskie Property
New Jersey struggles to capitalize on its historic past
When officials gathered last month in an attempt to get more attention for a Revolutionary War site, they were swimming against the tide of recent history.
Despite the lingering effects of the recession, tourism remains big business in New Jersey. The Garden State accounted for $38 billion of the nation’s $1.2 trillion tourism revenues last year, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.
That total made tourism New Jersey’s third-largest industry, behind pharmaceuticals and chemicals. With more than 900,000 tourists, New Jersey was America’s ninth most-visited state, according to the World Travel Association.
Even before the economic downturn, though, many involved with “heritage tourism” were concerned about some trends in how travelers view art and history. (Tyrrell, NJ Spotlight)
http://www.njspotlight.com/
Locally, the err in thinking is on the Village Council in regards to the Schedler property. First, they pay over list for the site, then spend 3 years talking about it, then come up with a plan to make it a baseball/soccer/lax/multi-purpose/nature park/historic site. You cannot have a focus on the historic value with all the other activities they want to cram into a single location. Sure, Ridgewood has Hermitage envy but at least at The Hermitage, it has a prime focus.