Toms River Plans to Repave ‘Entire Island’ Under Its Jurisdiction

The Ortley Beach water tower. (Photo: Daniel Nee)

Streets in Ortley Beach and the North Beach portions of Toms River Township will be receiving a full repaving, officials said recently.

Township Engineer Robert J. Chankalian said the Federal Emergency Management Agency has dedicated approximately $4.9 million toward the massive project, which will begin once more of the barrier island portions of the township recover from Superstorm Sandy.

“There’s still a lot of home construction and excavations in the road, and on top of that the township this fall is going to be upgrading a lot of our storm [sewer] pipes,” said Chankalian.

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When homes are rebuilt or raised, crews often need to cut into the street to disconnect, and then reconnect, gas, water and sewer lines. About 1,000 homes still need to be raised or rebuilt, meaning the project will have to wait until the bulk of those projects are completed.

“We’d like it to be as soon as possible, but with 1,000 homes still out there to be elevated and constructed, we wouldn’t want to rip it up within a year,” Chankalian said.

“Our street is absolutely horrendous,” said Patti Moretta, a Harborside Drive resident, who prompted the discussion after speaking about the condition of her street. “I’m constantly replacing tires.”

Chankalian said he would have a crew check out Harborside Drive specifically since Moretta described particularly poor road conditions there.

The decision on when to begin the overall project, which will include milling, paving and drainage improvements, will be based on how many homes still must be repaired, Chankalian said.