Jersey Shore officials are ramping up enforcement efforts in Point Pleasant after an unpermitted pop-up party caused chaos in Long Branch earlier this week, raising concerns ahead of Memorial Day weekend.
A flyer circulating on social media is promoting a so-called “beach takeover” on May 30, and police said they are actively investigating where the post originated and who may be behind it.
State Assemblyman Paul Kanitra said officials are already working to discourage attendance and are urging parents to take responsibility if underage teens are involved.
“They’re not getting permits, but they’re hosting events,” Kanitra said. “They think that they’re all producers… but the parents are the ones that need to be instilling some of these values in them.”
Kanitra noted that Point Pleasant has dealt with similar pop-up parties in the past, often requiring a heavy police presence.
“There would be hundreds of police officers here, and it costs an incredible amount of money,” he said. “These are seasonal towns. We don’t have the budgets to handle all this and to compensate for the overtime.”
Residents said they’re hoping to avoid a repeat of the Long Branch scene this summer, expressing concern about large crowds.
"I don't think that would be good for us. I think the crowd would get rowdy because sometimes the crowd does get rowdy here," an employee on the boardwalk said. "If it's already an unplanned, illegal thing, it just makes me nervous to have those kinds of people come in here."
Kanitra issued a stern warning for anyone planning to come to Point Pleasant this season.
"They need to know that when you come down here to the shore, you can have a good time, everybody's welcome from all over the tri-state area, but once we enforce in them that if you get too crazy, break too many laws, you're going to go home in handcuffs," he said. "Or you're going to have a nice ticket as a souvenir when you leave the Jersey Shore."