Berkeley Township residents who live in the South Seaside Park neighborhood can soon drop the word “South," and change their addresses to read "Seaside Park," joining their neighbors just yards to the north.
The unanimous vote from the Seaside Park council to annex the neighborhood concludes a decades-long battle with Berkeley Township. Last summer, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that South Seaside Park could secede from Berkeley if Seaside Park annexed it.
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The 5-0 vote included one abstention. It came after two hours of comment, including several over Zoom.
The South Seaside Park neighborhood is about 10 blocks at the bottom of the barrier island, right before Island Beach State Park.
Residents have argued for decades that geographically and culturally, the neighborhood has more in common with the rest of the island, including Seaside Park. The neighborhood has been part of Berkeley Township.
Berkeley is a dozen miles away on the mainland, across the Mathis Bridge. Some residents have felt for decades that they shouldn’t have to drive half an hour to visit Town Hall. The township denied a pitch to "deannex" South Seaside Park in the 1970s.
Berkeley Township doesn’t want to lose 10% of its tax base, or its ownership of White Sands Beach, without naming a price. Now, representatives from both towns will have 60 days to work out a settlement.
A study claims Seaside Park can save 8% on taxes by adding South Seaside Park.
