August 2020 – Sightseers' Delight

A gas station in Metuchen, N.J., in October 2017.

New Jersey increasing gas tax by 9.3 cents per gallon

August 31, 2020 Sightseers’ Delight

The New Jersey Department of the Treasury said it would increase the gas tax by 9.3 cents per gallon, but not everyone in the Garden State is excited about the increase.

Ohio State Buckeyes first game remembered at Ohio Wesleyan

August 31, 2020 Todd DeFeo

Normally, the return of college football means a return to the Horseshoe for Ohio State fans. Not this year. Thanks, COVID-19.

A view of the sign for The Metuchen Inn, a popular eatery in Metuchen, N.J., in October 2017.

New Jersey Senate voted to reimburse restaurants for false openings

August 29, 2020 Sightseers’ Delight

The New Jersey Senate unanimously approved a bill to reimburse restaurants for false openings.

Hurricane Laura batters Louisiana coast, storm surge could reach 30 miles inland

August 27, 2020 The Center Square

The storm surge from Hurricane Laura could reach 30 miles north into Southwest Louisiana and Southeast Texas, the National Hurricane Center warned early Thursday, even as the storm has been downgraded to a Category 2.

A sign at Glover Park in Marietta, Ga., on Aug. 16, 2020, urges visitors to wear masks and practice social distancing.

Tips on what to pack for the pandemic

August 17, 2020 Sightseers’ Delight

While many people have chosen not to travel amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it is still possible to take a trip and break away from the mandated isolation. It may just require taking a slightly different approach to packing.

Ohio could receive millions to address maintenance projects at national parks in the state

August 14, 2020 Todd DeFeo

Ohio could receive millions of dollars in federal funding to tackle maintenance at national parks in the state.

COVID-19 cases continue to rise in New Zealand

August 13, 2020 Voice of America

Officials in New Zealand say they have now identified 13 new cases of COVID-19 in Auckland, the nation’s largest city, all directly related to the four cases from the same household reported Tuesday.

A view of New York City from One World Observatory.

New Yorkers pay $6.44 per gallon in taxes on distilled spirits

August 12, 2020 The Center Square

New York distilled spirits drinkers pay the equivalent of $6.44 per gallon in state excise taxes on their stiff drinks, according to a new analysis from the Tax Foundation based on January 2020 data.

New Zealand goes back into lockdown following new COVID-19 cases

August 12, 2020 Voice of America

New Zealand is again under lockdown restrictions Wednesday after four COVID-19 infections were detected in Auckland, the South Pacific’s country’s biggest city. They are the first confirmed cases of community transmission of coronavirus in more than 100 days.

Revisiting the ‘Smallest Church in America’

August 12, 2020 Todd DeFeo

A local grocer built the church in South Newport in 1949. The church, formally named Christ’s Chapel and located on a quiet patch of land along rural U.S. Highway 17, roughly an hour south of Savannah, is a popular stop for tourists.