Stockton Avenue Roadwork, Removal of Old Water Main, to Begin Next Week in Seaside Park

Stockton Ave., Seaside Park, N.J. (Credit: Google Earth)

Long-planned roadwork on Stockton Avenue in Seaside Park will begin March 24, borough officials said this week.

The roadwork includes traditional milling and paving – funded partially by the state in an annual grant program – but will also include flood mitigation and additional work to remove an exposed water main that is no longer in use.

“There is an underground pipe that was capped off when the estuary was reconstructed,” Councilman Marty Wilk said at a council meeting last month during a period of frigid weather. “The water, however, is still in that 36-inch main. It’s percolating up through the road, under pressure, when the bay comes up. If you look at it right now, there is ice on both sides of the street.”

---

Get Daily Island News Updates Your email address:* Please enter all required fields Correct invalid entries

In the future, rainwater will be directed into the modern storm drains that have been installed. These pipes also ultimately empty into Barnegat Bay, however they are newer and cannot penetrate the pavement itself. In addition to the removal of the dormant main, the street will be reconstructed with new curbing, aprons and sidewalks.

The borough has received a $303,000 grant for the work from the state Department of Transportation. Locally, Seaside Park will pay for the remainder of the project’s cost – $67,590 for engineering services and about $178,000 in construction costs – through its annual capital improvement budget.

This work is scheduled to begin on or about March 24, weather permitting, and be completed no later than May 23.