And that has some merchants in Ocean City wondering why.
The city, which was voted New Jersey's best beach this year, is spending $41,000 on a fireworks show set for Oct. 10 as part of a block party weekend.
The idea is to draw off-season tourists and entice them to stay overnight.
City Councilman Scott Ping, who owns a downtown market, complains that mercantile fees, which fund tourism promotions, have gone up three years in a row. He wonders why the city plans to "blow it up in a half-hour" when far fewer people are present than in summer.
