Surf Club, Ortley Beach Erosion On Tap For Toms River Council

TOMS RIVER, NJ — The snow that fell Sunday will make it slow going Monday morning in Toms River, as freezing temperatures were making roads icy throughout the township.

The storm wasn’t nearly as extensive as the nor’easter that lingered for three days last week, but it may have created a sense of Groundhog Day with the effects prompting the Toms River Regional Schools to start the week with remote instruction.

Toms River got at least 4 inches of snow on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.

The effects of the nor’easter on Ortley Beach will draw ongoing attention, however, as significant dropoffs created when the waves eroded the beach during the storm, will require attention.

Last week, Gov. Phil Murphy called on the federal government to address the issue as photos of the severe erosion in Ortley Beach and other sites circulated on social media. Read more: Murphy Calls On Feds To Address Severe Beach Erosion

The erosion in Ortley Beach likely will be one of the topics at Tuesday’s Township Council meeting, where second reading and adoption of ordinances in the next steps to buy Joey Harrison’s Surf Club are on the agenda.

The council also is set to discuss increasing the beach fees in Ortley Beach, and raising fees for planning and zoning applications and a few other services. The meeting is set for 7 p.m. and can be watched online.

On Wednesday, the school board is scheduled to hold its committee meetings, starting at 6:30 p.m. Information on the meetings is on the school district’s website.

The school board meets remotely because of the limits on indoor gatherings in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Here’s a look at the most recent coronavirus numbers in Toms River:

Ocean County remains in the orange "high risk" category due to the rates of transmission of the coronavirus. As of Sunday, Ocean County had 46,556 cases, up 2,377 from the 44,179 on Jan. 30. Toms River has 378 new cases in that time, with 7,734, up from 7,356 on Jan. 30, according to the Ocean County Health Department.

Ocean County has had 1,608 deaths from complications of COVID-19, up from 1,290 as of Jan. 1. Toms River has 256, up from 232 in that time, according to the county health department.
There have been more than 645,000 people who have tested positive for the coronavirus via PCR test in New Jersey since March 2020, including 3,938 new PCR positives reported Sunday, according to the state Department of Health. As of Saturday, 2,837 people were hospitalized due to the coronavirus, with 571 in intensive care and 373 patients on ventilators, according to the state COVID-19 website. All three of those numbers have decreased over the last week.

If you're among those who are trying to get an appointment to get vaccinated, Patch readers offered up advice on how they were able to get their shots. Read more: Ocean Co. Readers Share How To Get A COVID-19 Vaccine Appointment

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