On Ocean County's barrier island, an area still embattled with the rebuilding of Hurricane Sandy, one neighbor is raising their house while another is hanging garland from a balcony.
The Christmas week remains busy with the hum of work crews rebuilding homes or demolishing them in places such as Mantoloking, while road crews work along Route 35. Still, traffic backed up from the ongoing projects on the barrier island is part holiday rush and part alternating traffic backlog due to the construction.
The Christmas holiday may be a day off for the road crews who are part of a massive project to repave Route 35 and reconstruction the water, sewer and drainage systems underneath it, where work is expected to last into June.
Elsewhere, seasonal businesses are boarded up for the winter, while other stores open year-round roll out the Christmas lights and wreaths to get residents to Shop Local for the holidays.
Traditions, such as decorating the neighborhood welcome signs with holiday ornaments, continue with attention to detail. Shopping corridors from Lavallette to Bay Head light up with holiday decor on each light pole, while traffic lights blink yellow for the winter off-season.
The mix of closure, construction and Christmas are again a way of life on the barrier island, this second holiday season after Hurricane Sandy. Here's a gallery of resident and business holiday decorations, as well as construction that's unfolded throughout the holiday week.
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