All state parks are free through the summer,
including Island Beach State Park, but some towns near the park are concerned
with crowd control -- once the lots fill up and hundreds of people are forced
to turn around.
A hot and humid
day like today will most likely draw a capacity crowd to Island Beach State
Park, but once the gates close -- you have a lot of people who still want to
enjoy a beach day, and don't want to drive far.
That means
extra resources for traffic, safety, and crowd control.
“I know
where the governor lives in Rumson,” says LeeAnn Zoppi, of Berkeley Township.
“Try it over there. Try that over there. Why don't you make it a free-for-all
over where you live and see how that works?”
Zoppi has
lived in Berkeley Township next to the entrance to Island Beach State Park for
25 years.
“People
don't even want to shop on a Saturday and Sunday because to get home is a
nightmare, where these people going to go?” says Zoppi. “And why would you do
this? How is that going to help our township?
How is that going to help New Jersey?
It's not.”
Zoppi and
local leaders say they were never told about the plans to offer free access
until it was announced. Seaside Park Mayor John Peterson says that left
his town unprepared to handle what could be unprecedented crowds this
summer.
“It's
really something that could have entailed a lot more input in terms of
practical solutions that also could have been implemented at the state level
and still can be,” says Peterson.
The mayor is
asking for the state to help provide additional financial resources to the
communities to handle the overflow. But people like Zoppi think the state money
could have been better spent than offering a free pass.
“Don't you
think you could have done something better serving with our surplus of money
then making the island a free-for-all,” says Zoppi. “It was already crowded on
a Saturday or Sunday you cannot get through.”
Mayor
Peterson says he will speak with the governor's office to see if more resources
are available. In the meantime, he welcomes the extra visitors to the town, but
just asks for patience from everyone this summer.