Asbury Park No Longer A Part Of State's Transitional Aid Program

ASBURY PARK, NJ - Asbury Park officials, along with New Jersey Lt. Governor Sheila Oliver and other state officials, were on hand in Trenton on Tuesday as the city of Asbury Park was removed from the Transitional Aid Program.

The Transitional Aid Program provides discretionary aid to municipalities with severe structural difficulties. It anticipates difficulties making payments toward non-discretionary or critical obligations, including debt service, contractual obligations, and payroll.

“Asbury Park received much-needed Transitional Aid money and valuable guidance from 2010 to 2017 and has remained in the program for monitoring until now,” Asbury Park Mayor John Moor said in a press release.

“We are proud that through this partnership, and the years of hard work by City staff, the City can now report that it is financially stable – which is important especially while trying to recover from a pandemic.”

Asbury Park was placed into the then-Distressed Cities Program due to a budget deficit in 2010. During its time in the program, the city saw a significant bond rating upgrade, a decline in municipal property taxes, and a half-billion-dollar increase in total assessed property value.

“The City of Asbury Park has experienced a major turnaround as a result of the decade-long partnership between the City and the State, and they are now on sound financial footing,” said Lt. Governor Sheila Oliver in a press release.

“This is a true comeback story to go from fiscal distress to becoming one of the most popular beach and tourist destinations in the State.”