Avoiding tags so you're not 'it'

One way to avoid beach-tag inspectors at the Jersey shore is to dive into the surf and lay low till they pass by.

If Wildwood implements beach tags without its neighbors, North Wildwood or Wildwood Crest, some tagless beachgoers could literally just roll over a sandy, invisible line into a tag-free town when the inspectors show up. That's why Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano Jr., who's contemplating beach tags, said that all three towns would have to be on board.

"They'd have no choice. Whoever started beach fees in this town, the others would have to follow," he said.

But the mayors of both towns say that they have no plans to start tagging tourists.

"As long as I'm mayor of the city of North Wildwood, I'm going to be in favor of free beaches," North Wildwood Mayor Bill Henfey said. "Changing it would do more damage than good."

Wildwood Crest Mayor Carl Groon said that beach tags were not on his "radar."

"This is not the time to discuss these things," he said.

Tourists may not know or care that the Wildwoods are made up of several municipalities, but tourism officials fear beach tags in one town could affect the image of the others. Or, savvy beachgoers could just flock to beaches in North Wildwood or the Crest.

"Can't something in life be free, besides air?" Henfey asked.

Tourists also could just head to quiet, little Strathmere, where beaches are free but there's little in the way of entertainment. In Atlantic City, the closest of the five free beaches along the South Jersey shore, Mayor Lorenzo Langford said that there are no plans to change the status quo.

"Atlantic City enjoys some distinction for having free beaches," he said. "You start charging that and you've lost a unique feature."