Tourists and New Jersey residents may soon have to follow a dress code on the Wildwood Boardwalk – and not just the standard shirt and shoes.
Officials are considering new rules that would also ban visitors from wearing baggy pants on the town’s Boardwalk, according to the Associated Press.
Under this regulation, the waistband of any pants, shorts, skirts or swimsuits cannot be more than three inches below the waist to prevent the exposure of skin or underwear.
Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano Jr. tells The Press of Atlantic City he’s tired of hearing complaints about people who “walk around with their butts hanging out.”
The proposed legislation will also require footwear, such as shoes or flip-flops, to be worn at all times, in order to protect people’s feet from nails or protruding wood on the Boardwalk, and require people to wear shirts anytime after 8 p.m. and before 5 a.m.
The shoe requirement, Troiano says, is a safety issue, while the shirt and pants rules have more to do with improving the image of the town and maintaining the boardwalk’s ‘family-friendly appeal.’ Wildwood is going a step further than other area towns such as Cape May and Ocean City, however, which have regulations that require people to wear clothing over their bathing suits on their respective promenade and Boardwalk.
The wardrobe requirements are part of a new city ordinance called “Establishing decency standards on the public Boardwalk.” The ordinance is scheduled for a public hearing and vote on June 12.
As ridiculous as the law may seem, Wildwood would not be alone in mandating that tourists clean up before hitting the town. A law banning saggy pants went into effect last week in Terrebone Parish, La., stating, in part, “exposing one’s skin or undergarments below the waist is contrary to safety, health, peace, and good order of the parish, and the general welfare.”
