What a 'Deal!' But is it legal? Critics clap back at discounted beach tags for residents in upscale town
Legal experts and advocates say this plan violates state law.
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A Jersey Shore town that already has the most expensive seasonal beach badges in the state is coming under fire for a plan to give locals a discount.
Legal experts and advocates say this plan violates state law.
Multimillion-dollar mansions overlook a section of Deal's beachfront which, until a post-Superstorm Sandy replenishment 10 years ago using public funds, barely existed.
Critics of the upscale town say enough is enough.
“They want to privatize the beaches. That's quite clear. First off, it's illegal,” says Bill Rosenblatt, a Surfrider Foundation board member and beach access advocate.
The uproar involves an ordinance, offering steep discounts for Deal residents up to $50 less than what out-of-towners would pay. It passed its first reading last month.
“I think it would set precedent for other places in the state,” said Rosenblatt.
In a 1972 state Supreme Court decision in the case of Neptune City versus Avon-by-the-Sea, the Court said in part
"We are convinced it has to follow that, while municipalities may validly charge reasonable fees for the use of their beaches, they may not discriminate in any respect between their residents and non-residents."
News 12 showed Deal clerk Jo Anna Myung the New Jersey Supreme Court decision and why some say the discounts violate it.
“Was this not known when the ordinance was drafted for the pricing differences? Obviously, we did not look into it further. We were just going by offering something for the town just as other towns have been doing. An early bird discount,” said Myung.
Myung told News 12 Deal would “look into it” after taking down extensive notes on the past court decision.
But critics like Rosenblatt say these latest actions, like charging $200 for a seasonal badge, follow a pattern.
“Deal loves to try and push the boundaries on things,” he said.
Since 2015, Deal has tried to restrict parking on side streets by beach access points by making it permit only on several occasions and each time it came under fire from legal experts, and those proposed ordinances were tabled.
Assemblywoman Margie Donlon tells News 12 she reached out to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to make sure the borough does not discriminate between residents and non-residents.
Deal’s next commissioners’ meeting is scheduled for Dec. 3.
