The improved bulkhead along Sea Bright’s riverfront will stretch from Peninsula Avenue to Osborne Place. Close to half the new bulkhead will be part of the ongoing development, The Haven at Sea Bright. EMILY SCHOPFER
By Emily Schopfer
SEA BRIGHT – The Sea Bright Borough Council introduced a $2.5 million bond ordinance aimed at bulkhead improvement. The ordinance, which would improve roughly 2,000 linear feet of bulkhead in downtown Sea Bright, was introduced at the July 21 council meeting, with a public hearing scheduled for 6 p.m. Aug. 18.
The improvements would take place across from Sea Bright’s public beach, from Peninsula Avenue to Osborne Place. Close to half of this stretch of bulkhead will be part of the ongoing devel- opment, The Haven at Sea Bright. As part of the 44-unit development owned by Toll Brothers, there will be rough- ly 840 linear feet of 9-foot-tall steel bulkhead along the riverfront between River Street and Beach Street.
The borough could not confirm at this time how much, if any, of the remaining bulkhead is municipally owned. Bulkheads along the Shrewsbury River are split between borough and private ownership, held by businesses and residences.
This division between publicly versus privately owned bulkheads can create bureaucratic red tape for any improvement project.
Under the New Jersey Local Bond Law, any debt authorized by a bond ordinance must relate to a public purpose, such as public capital improvements. In this instance, the public purpose of an improved bulkhead is evident – downtown Sea Bright consistently experiences flooding during heavy rainfall and coastal storms.
“The residents and businesses in Sea Bright have sustained repeated flood damage from coastal storms such as nor’easters, tropical storms and hurricanes since the borough’s settlement in the early 1840’s,” according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New York District. The majority of Sea Bright’s riverside is categorized by FEMA as an AE Zone, an inland, high-risk flood zone vulnerable to river flooding and waves under three feet. Sea Bright’s riverfront can experience minor flooding when tides reach 5.2 feet. At high tide, the Shrewsbury River along Sea Bright has reached between 3.48 and 3.57 feet between Aug. 4 and 5, according to the National Water Prediction Service, part of NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). If water levels reach 6.2 or 7.2 feet, the borough can be subject to moderate or severe flood damage.
The mayor and council, led by the Flood Mitigation Committee, will host a public meeting at 6 p.m. Aug. 18 to provide a detailed over view of the project, according to borough administrator Rachel Giolitto. “The meeting will include a presentation outlining the project, followed by an opportunity for residents to ask questions,” she said. It will take place both virtually and in person at the Mayor Dina Long Community Center. The regularly scheduled council meeting will begin at 7 p.m., where formal action will be taken.
This article originally appeared in the August 6-12, 2026 print edition of The Two River Times.
