Economy hot topic for N.J. trip to D.C.
Saturday, January 31, 2009

By Derek Harper
Published in The Press of Atlantic City

WASHINGTON - The talk at the reception of the Chamber of Commerce Southern New Jersey in the nation's capital Thursday night focused on the economic downturn and - with the pending $819 billion stimulus package - what will happen next.

"You don't know how it will evolve," Absecon Mayor Pete Elco said of the downturn.

Elco, attending as the Atlantic City Convention & Visitors Authority's director of intergovernmental relations, said, "What I'm hearing at all levels of government and business, those organizations are seriously looking at cutting costs."

He said he has not seen this level of concern, saying it was "like a brave new world of government and business."

The reception, at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park, was one of several held at the hotel where most people stayed after taking the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce's charter train.

State Sen. Jeff Van Drew, D-Cape May, Cumberland, Atlantic, said the biggest issue is getting people working again.

Similarly, newly inaugurated U.S. Rep. John Adler, D-3, said he heard the same things throughout the reception - businesses that are credit-worthy can't get loans, even from banks they have worked with for years.

Adler, who voted for the federal stimulus package Wednesday, said there was concern about earlier rescues. "People are talking about the financial bailout ...," he said, "and how it has not gone from Wall Street to Main Street."

Others talked about how the recession is hitting certain parts of the economy. Larger banks are generally worse off than smaller, community-focused banks, while one man recounted his brother-in-law's struggles with his car dealership, saying the situation is the worst they have ever seen.

As a result of the of the worries, consultant Richard Mroz heard talk about the economic stimulus program that now heads to the U.S. Senate, saying people hope the package will spend money on projects that create good jobs. "People are mindful of how it might affect them," he said.

Atlantic City Electric President Kenneth Parker said, "I think that anybody here knows the pain out there. I've been here two times and (this year) that's all I hear about."

From his perspective, the current economic situation has his company looking for what it can do to help ratepayers with their bills and how can it build its infrastructure to better deliver power in the future.

Outside the reception, Atlantic County Assemblyman John Amodeo echoed the worries of the people inside. "You know what? They already know there's bad times."

He knows from firsthand experience. A union crane operator, his job was spared when Revel Entertainment slowed down development of its South Inlet casino this week.

But his son-in-law wasn't spared. He was among the 400 laid off.

Amodeo said he told him that construction workers are always building themselves out of jobs - when the project's done, the work's done. He added, "But to get cut off in the middle (of a project) is a disappointment."