“People were out of work, restaurant owners lost weeks of sales tax, tax revenues were ultimately changed, and we lost tourism for a long time,” said Bloustein School Dean Emeritus James W. Hughes.
Until a rebound would be made in the way of consumer spending, he said, economic losses were somewhat reduced through a surge in construction and cleanup activity.
“In many cases, that bounce back got the overall economy pretty much back on track within a two-year period,” Hughes said.