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Bay Head, Brick, Island Heights, Lavellette, Mantoloking, Ocean Heights, Point Pleasant and Sandy Hook closed their beaches, joining Seaside Heights. The boardwalk in Seaside Heights remains open -- for now.
New Jersey issued an executive order giving towns the option of restricting access to the oceanfront.
“I want to take every measure I can to protect the community,” Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian said in a statement. “We have a large senior population, and it’s of utmost importance to take their well-being into consideration.”
A notice on the Lavallette website states: "The entire length of the municipal boardwalk from Ortley Ave south to Dover Ave and the entire length of the municipal beach (from northern border of Ocean Beach, Toms River, south to the border of Ortley Beach, Toms River) shall be closed to any public use until the Governor of New Jersey lifts the State of Emergency. . ."
In Asbury Park, beach access will be available at First, Third and Sunset avenues. Access to the beach also will be open at Deal Lake Drive, the city said in a statement.
Point Pleasant Beach is temporarily banning all new rentals in town. Brick also decided to ban all short-term rentals of less than 30 days, as well as order all its parks closed to the public.
Deal, Interlaken and Loch Arbour also have asked out-of-town seasonal residents not to come to their summer homes. For vacationers who arrived already, they are asked to self-quarantine for two weeks.
Spring Lake's boardwalk is closed to the public, the police department announced on Facebook. "The Mayor and Council have taken this step for the safety of our residents and visitors, as it is impossible to achieve realistic social distancing on the boardwalk," the post said. "There is still access to the beach at two locations: Brown Ave and Pitney Avenue."
Island Heights has closed all public access areas. The parks, beaches, docks, playgrounds, the pavilion and boardwalk are closed until further notice, according to a post on the police department's Facebook page. All on-street parking on River Avenue is also prohibited, except for authorized vehicles, the post says.
Seaside Heights became the first Jersey Shore town to shut its beaches, even for casual walks, to fight the spread of the coronavirus. Its boardwalk remains open for now. Beach access points are gated and locked.
“In support of Gov. (Phil) Murphy's 'stay home' executive orders and to further protect our public employees and residents, I have instructed the borough administrator to lock the beach crossover gates until further notice,” Mayor Anthony Vaz said on Facebook.
Residents and non-residents alike can take a virtual look at the beach, however, by clicking on this EarthCam link.
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