Under new ownership with added features, the Asbury Park Zombie Walk will be held from 12 to 8 p.m. one week from Saturday.
The Guinness Book of World Record event was called off by organizer Jason Meehan last month, citing exponential growth, planning needs, and organizing costs for the event’s demise.
But last week restauranteur Johnny McGillion announced he was in the midst of purchasing the event’s rights in order to keep it an Asbury Park mainstay.
“A lot of communities would want the Zombie Walk in their town but we are looking to prevent that,” the Asbury Park Johnny Mac’s bar owner said. “We’re looking forward to taking it over and getting involved. It’s a tremendous asset to the City of Asbury Park.”
The City Council unanimously voted to approve the event, which is being organized in partnership with the Asbury Park Chamber of Commerce and boardwalk redeveloper Madison Marquette.
The walk will begin at 4 p.m. along the Asbury Park Boardwalk, traverse up Asbury Avenue and onto Cookman Avenue. It will end one block further than in previous years at Main Street, Economic Director Tom Gilmour said.
They will rent Merchant’s Park where a DJ will be stationed in the area.
Also different this year will be the omission of the ceremonial judging and trophies that was held in previous years at Press Plaza.
Despite winning the Guinness Book World Record’s ‘largest gathering of zombies’ in 2010 and 2013,” city offiicals expect the normally close to 10,000 attendance figure will plunge this year.
“We’ve had a lot of calls asking when it was going to happen or if was not going to happen,” Gilmour said. “We’ve been telling people it was not going to happen.”
Gilmour said he expects 5,000 people to attend.
“There’s a huge following for this event,” Gilmour said. “It’s really turned into a family event. It’s like a second Halloween for a lot of families.”
Meehan, who first organized the walk in 2007, will remain involved with the organition, McGillion said.
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