Posted on April 1, 2024
With the summer tourism season just two months away, Toms River Township is poised to authorize a $300,000 contract to begin repairing damaged dune walk-overs along the beach in Ortley Beach.
Those entries have been barricaded due to storm damage since this past winter. Multiple storms have severely eroded the beaches at Ortley Beach, creating cliffs, at times, as high as ten feet tall in some places.
The township is expected to vote on a $314,813 contract with Earle Asphalt Company to provide ‘on-call dune walkover and repairs’ at the beach.
As for the beach itself, Mayor Daniel Rodrick has previously said that repairs will not be conducted until after Memorial Day, leaving the future of the beach access in doubt. In a recent article with the Asbury Park Press, Rodrick cited a late spring nor’easter that washed away over $670,000 in beach replenishment work conducted in 2022 and 2023 as the reason to wait until after Memorial Day weekend.
RESOLUTION Of The Township Council Of The Township Of Toms River, Ocean County, New Jersey, Authorizing Award Of Contract For The 2024 On-Call Dune And Walkover Repair Project To Earle Asphalt Company, As The Lowest Bidder Meeting All The Bid Specifications, In The Total Contract Amount Not To Exceed $314,813.13.
The township has not yet contracted for beach replenishment in 2024.
A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project to replenish the beaches in Northern Ocean County before the summer tourism season has been delayed to contract problems. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is expected to award a contract for the Barnegat Inlet to Manasquan Inlet beach renourishment project in April.
At this time, the township has announced no official plan to fix the damaged beaches in Toms River.
