Arrests, Tickets Were Down Sharply in Seaside Heights This Summer

Seaside Heights police car. (Photo: Daniel Nee)

Seaside Heights officials are attributing a sharp drop in arrests and summonses – even parking violations – to their efforts to attract a new clientele to the borough this summer.

Heights officials have been trying to lure more families to the borough with free concerts, family nights and bonfires on the beach in their quest to shed the town’s hard-partying reputation, a strategy that has been working, numbers show.

According to Councilwoman Victoria Graichen, the borough’s municipal court reported a drop in criminal complaints issued by 224 this summer, along with 228 fewer municipal ordinance violations – minor offenses such as noise violations – and 268 fewer parking violations. The reduction in summonses resulted in a $43,711 loss in court revenue this year, as compared to the same period in 2015, though officials did not seem to mind.

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“Yes, we’re losing $43,000, but the clientele we’re bringing into Seaside – good families – is definitely worth $43,000,” said Mayor Anthony Vaz.

Overall, Vaz said, arrests were down by about 600 this year.