‘Temporary’ 70-Foot Cell Tower on Route 35 in Ocean Beach OK’d to Return

3131 Route 35 North, the location of a proposed temporary wireless tower, April 2023. (Photo: Daniel Nee/Shorebeat)

Toms River’s planning board has approved a two year-long placement of a temporary cell phone tower, operated by Verizon, along Route 35’s northbound lanes in Toms River’s Ocean Beach section.

The board granted Verizon approval to erect the 70-foot tower in the yard of a marine supply business at 3131 Route 35 North between Carmel Drive and Ocean Bay Boulevard. The ballast-mounted communications tower received board approval to operate through Nov. 30, 2026, backdated from Oct. 31, 2024. The tower will operate from May 1 through Nov. 30 each year.

The tower first received temporary approval to operate in the spring of 2021, with Verizon coming to the board every year since to re-present its application. The company’s representatives have said they are working to build a permanent tower and preparing a formal proposal to the board to do so. A previous temporary cellular array mounted on the roof of an oceanfront condominium building in Ortley Beach was converted to a permanent site last year.

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3131 Route 35 North, the location of a proposed temporary wireless tower, April 2023. (Photo: Daniel Nee/Shorebeat)

Verizon has occasionally sparred with local communities over its barrier island coverage, stating more nodes are required to support a massive influx of demand for high-speed data, as well as the prioritization of emergency calls, during the busy summer season. The company recently settled a legal dispute with Lavallette over a mesh network of smaller nodes placed on street lights and utility poles across town.